BB winner Shilpa ’not arrested’ - Sept 28 2007
Shilpa Shetty’s UK spokeswoman has denied that the Bollywood star was arrested in India over her kiss with Richard Gere.

The Celebrity Big Brother winner was stopped at Mumbai Airport by immigration officials on her way to the opening of the Miss Bollywood musical in Berlin.

But the spokeswoman said she was not arrested or detained.

Earlier, Shilpa’s Indian spokesman, Dale Bhagwagar, said: "She called me in the middle of the night and was in tears."

But UK spokeswoman Teji Singh said: "Every time Shilpa leaves the country she has to show her paperwork, because of the Richard Gere thing.

"There was absolutely no detention, no arrest whatsoever. She was rummaging through to get her paperwork and just stepped aside to a side room so she wouldn’t block the queues.

"She wasn’t crying. She was bunged up with the flu and she was only in there for eight to 15 minutes."

Hollywood star Richard, 58, caused an outcry when he grabbed Shilpa, 32, swept her backwards, and kissed her several times on the cheek at an Aids-awareness event earlier this year.

Richard swooped down on Shilpa in April after shouting in Hindi to thousands of truckers "No condom, no sex".

Shilpa went on to defend the actor, saying "so much has been blown out of proportion", and Richard apologised for causing offence.


Shilpa held over Gere kiss - Sept 27 2007
Celebrity Big Brother star Shilpa Shetty is still feeling the effects of a kiss from Hollywood star Richard Gere five months ago.

The actress was held today (Thursday) by immigration officials at Mumbai airport who said she was still wanted for obscenity charges brought in the wake of the public kiss.

Shilpa was in tears after being stopped while on her way to Berlin where the musical Miss Bollywood opens this weekend, said her spokesman Dale Bhagwagar.

Richard publicly kissed the Bollywood beauty in April at an Aids awareness event in India, sparking an outcry among conservative hard-line Hindus, who claimed they had violated the country’s strict anti-obscenity laws.

A regional court issued arrest warrants against Richard and barred Shilpa from leaving the country. The order was overturned by the Supreme Court.

But the Supreme Court ruling didn’t show up in the immigration department computer system, Mr Bhagwagar said.

"She called me in the middle of the night and was in tears," he said, adding Shilpa was finally permitted to join her dance troupe after prolonged questioning.

"I can understand something like this if I’d committed a criminal offence. But what was my offense, when I’m just an actor, going to perform a musical on foreign land," she said.

Shortly after the row erupted, Richard, 57, apologised for any offense but also said the whole controversy was manufactured by a small hard-line political party.


Shilpa’s Injunction Bid Over ’Agent’ - Aug 17 2007
Shilpa Shetty has filed a case in an Indian court to protect herself from alleged misrepresentation by Briton Jasveer Barton claiming to be her agent, the star’s publicist has said.

The petition in a Mumbai court asks for an injunction against alleged commitments made and deals signed by Barton in Shilpa’s name while the actress was participating in the British reality TV show Celebrity Big Brother, said Dale Bhagwagar in a statement.

"We have put up a case at the City Civil Court, Mumbai, asking for an injunction," he said. "By going to court, Shilpa is just protecting herself."