Kangana Ranaut takes a break, Karan Johar's detox and more

Kangana Ranaut takes off on a holiday

After she collected her third National Award in New Delhi, Kangana Ranaut flew out for her biannual holiday. The first destination for the Tanu Weds Manu actress is London.

"In the first leg of her holiday is a week between London and Paris. She is holidaying with her sister Rangoli. The sisters plan to shop to their heart's content. After all, retail therapy is the best kind of therapy," says a source close to the actress.

After Rangoli returns to Mumbai, Kangana will head out to Switzerland for some "me time". "She is a mountain girl so she loves the Swiss Alps. For years, she’s been going at least twice a year."

In the winters, the actress enjoys skiing and in spring, she likes to cycle or just walk around. After the harrowing few months she’s had, this break couldn’t come at a more opportune time for Kangana. Happy holidays, girl!

KJo’s detox break

Also, on an Alpine holiday is Karan Johar. Though his week away from Mumbai probably will not be as laid-back as Kangana’s. The director is currently in Viva Mayr, the lakeside wellness resort in Austria.

In the last year or so, Viva Mayr has become the place for the who's who of Bollywood to detox. Last month, the Kapoor sisters - Sonam and Rhea, spent a fortnight towards the end of which they were joined by their parents, Sunita and Anil.

Karan Johar, who recently wrapped up a schedule for his next – Ae Dil Hai Mushkil jetted off to the medical spa for some R & R.

Karan’s bestie Rani Mukerji has been a big fan of the medical spa for some years now. The new mom is the one responsible for Viva Mayr’s popularity in B-Town. Karan was a guest at an elaborate sit-down dinner Rani hosted in March to introduce doctors from the spa to her friends.

Early converts to Viva Mayr’s spartan wellness regime include Alia Bhatt, Parineeti Chopra and Arjun Kapoor.

The cornerstones of the detox clinic’s expensive treatments are the starvation diet (stale bread and a bowl of watery soup for dinner!), colonic irrigation and endless chewing.

The spa promises weight loss, bright eyes and glowing skin after just a week of this routine. Other guests at Rani’s dinner included Hrithik Roshan, Ranveer Singh, Vaani Kapoor and Sonali Bendre.

Bend it like Sid

A couple of months ago, when Sidharth Malhotra joined Abhishek Bachchan’s All Stars Football Club (ASFC) for a game, the Kapoor & Sons actor got quite a reality check.

"I got really winded. They play a full 90-minute game and I realised that I was a bit out of shape," Sidharth told me recently.

He grew up playing every possible sport, from table tennis to rugby; so not being able to keep up did hurt Sidharth’s ego. "This was the first time I played a sport non-stop after I moved to Mumbai to become an actor. I thought I was fit but…"

He was quite impressed with the footballing skills of Ranbir Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapoor. "They are all fit boys. I just have to become regular."

It took a couple of more practice sessions on a ground in Bandra with the All-Stars to get Sid comfortable enough to join the team. Sidharth has joined the team just as it’s started prepping for a three-match tournament followed by an international charity tour that will take them to Qatar, Singapore, Dubai and London.

The tourney is slated for June when Sidharth is expected to start shooting his next – an untitled action caper with director duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK.

Reality bites

Sometimes fiction can seem very close to reality. After his debut film tanked miserably at the box-office, this industry kid has been desperately looking for the right script.

His controversial past has meant that most filmmakers are not willing to touch him with the proverbial barge pole. Add to this, his non-existent acting skills, and it’s clear why he’s been out of work since his debut about a year ago.   

Recently, the actor was sent the script for a thriller to read. Turns out the story about a lover’s murder was too close to reality. He was so rattled by the script, he thought someone was playing a cruel prank on him.

Last heard, he has now specified to everyone around him that he only wants to play nice guy roles. Apparently that’s what his mentor has advised. Anything to divert the attention from his past.