Fear of flying in confined spaces ensures that she'd rather use regular flights than chartered ones

While the rest of B-Town blatantly flaunts its love for chartered flights, Ekta Kapoor has decided to stick to regular passenger airlines.

The TV and film producer will soon embark on a seven-day 10-city tour to promote her next release Ragini MMS.

And it isn't an austerity drive that has compelled this decision. Rather, it is her own fear of flying and confined spaces that drove her to pick being with the masses.

Ekta admits, "I have never chartered a plane. I am the most scared flier (sic) on earth. Travelling in a small six-seater or 12-seater aircraft would not only make me claustrophobic but also terrified.

That's why I am travelling to all these cities for the Ragini tour via regular passenger flights, though it's exhausting."

This will be Ekta's first hectic flight schedule. She explains, "Ragini MMS releases on May 13 and I need to cover as much distance as I can before May 1 as I need to come back to Mumbai before that. I have to promote Ragini myself.

I didn't have to do it during LSD as the director Dibakar Banerjee had his own cult following. Ragini is made of rank newcomers."

Ekta is exhausted with the tiring schedule. "I barely sleep three hours a day. There are parties happening everywhere for youngsters and I have to attend them.

Fatigue is catching up but I can't rest now as I will also have to attend Tusshar's Shor premiere in New Delhi."

Fear factor

>> On flights, Ekta never sleeps. She prays till the flight lands. She doesn't eat on flights either.

>> International flights are the worst for Ekta as she can't sleep three days before the flight starts. The long journey aboard is one time when she prefers to pop a sleeping pill and doze off for a few hours.

>> Few people know that Ekta hates travelling alone on flights and always takes friends along. This time, close buddy writer Mushtaq Shiekh is accompanying her on her inter-city tour.