Score outside: Preity down, Soha to go

Mumbai, April 2: Santosh Patil and his nine friends had not come to watch the men in blue: they knew they wouldn’t be allowed in without tickets.

The 16-year-olds had come to watch the Preity Zintas and Soha Ali Khans. They stood at the VIP entrance and gaped at the Bollywood brigade, who began arriving around 1.30pm.

“This one is a Lexus, that one’s a BMW. See, a Land Cruiser,” went the excited chatter as the boys rushed to see the cars’ owners behind the rolled-up windows. Aamir Khan sped through the entrance, so did Nita Ambani. Ranbir Kapoor had to get off and walk as his car got surrounded. Like a thousand others, he wore the blue India shirt.

Saif Ali Khan followed, waving to the onlookers as they screamed out his name through the barricades.

“Where else would we see so many film stars together?” said Santosh, as Shahid Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Dino Morea and Sanjay Kapoor arrived one by one. Santosh and his friends disappeared after the match began but not before promising: “We will come here again at night after we win.”

Not all those without a ticket were happy with the idea of watching from home. A man demanded of a police officer that he be allowed in, claiming a pickpocket had stolen his ticket.

For some of the girls, the highlight was their glimpse of Rahul Gandhi. “That was him!” gushed one as the MP’s car whizzed by, two security guards perched on the footboards.

Apart from the Indian and Sri Lankan Presidents, the final drew politicians such as BJP president Nitin Gadkari, Arun Jaitley, Manohar Joshi and Union minister Kapil Sibal, who made a quiet entry after the match had begun. The loudest roar was reserved for southern superstar Rajinikanth.

Nearby stood other groups, some with their faces painted, holding flags and banners. An object of envy for the rest, they stood in queue to enter the stadium. “It’s difficult finding one’s way to the right entrance, anyway. And now we must wait in a line that is crawling like a Test match,” grumbled Vaibhav, 22, at the Gate 6 queue.

While most fans wore blue, one group was in bright yellow. Australian Duncan Nosh and his friends had bought tickets for the final in the hope their country would make it.

So, who were they supporting? Nosh’s motto seemed to be: when in Rome, do as the Romans do. “We are supporting India as the final is being held here,” he said.

Bachchan skips

Amitabh Bachchan didn’t watch the match. “Dad is superstitious when it comes to the Indian team. Dad decided not to watch the match just to let India win,” PTI quoted Abhishek Bachchan.

“He will be in his room. Mom (Jaya) and Aishwarya (will) go to his room and give updates on the score.”

Another star to miss the match was Hrithik Roshan. He was shooting for an adapted version of Agneepath, having turned down producer Karan Johar’s offer of a day off.