Amitabh Bachchan: Everyone knows him to be this flawlessly well-behaved public persona. Only his close friends know what a yaaron ka yaar he is. Trust me. I know. Some time back a Kannada filmmaker wanted Mr Bachchan to make a guest appearance as himself in a film. After having failed to get access the anxious filmmaker asked me. I spoke to AB .

He not only readily agreed to do it for my sake, he also refused to charge a single penny for his precious time and attention. On the other hand nothing can make AB do what he doesn't want to. Some time ago this Bengali filmmaker from the US had nearly finalized AB for his second directorial venture.

Then something happened. The desperate director even offered to change the script/producer /whatever to have his main lead on board. AB didn't budge. "What can be said about the convictions of a man who's willing to change everything in his creative vision for the sake of one actor? Thanks, but no thanks." That's what legends are all about. They know.

Jaya Bachchan: Apart from maintaining the most perfect home in Bollywood and looking after two of the biggest stars in Asia, Jaya is also the most meticulous phone person in the film industry. No message goes unnoticed. No call goes unreturned.

Also, thanks to the Bachchans's ever-efficient secretary Rosy Singh no friends' birthday goes unnoticed. Urmila recalls how pleasantly surprised she was when she received a call from Jaya on her birthday. "I didn't know Abhishek's and my birthday were separated by just a day. Jayaji pointed it out to me."

Shah Rukh Khan: One of the best minds in the film industry . And a very very loyal friend. Ask his buddies like Karan Johar and Farah Khan. They would give their left arm for him, and probably throw in the right one too. SRK doesn't demand, he commands that kind of loyalty.

Though we share the same birthday I can't claim to have him as a close buddy. But whenever we talk he warns me to make a clear demarcation line between my professional and personal interests in Bollywood.

"Never make the mistake of believing any one of your star -friends are going to stand by you if you're in a crisis. Ultimately all you have is your family and close friends," he warns me. I may not qualify as a close friend. But check this out.

When I took my daughter (the biggest SRK fan in the universe) to meet him, he treated her like his own child, sat her down next to him, spoke to her about school and friends, advised her about career options whenever she grows up, made her have lunch and insisted that a photo be clicked of them together.

"But I don't want your father in the picture," he warned her. SRK insists he wants to have a heart-to-heart with me one of these days. "Just give me half an hour," he requested the last time we spoke. "Why half , you can have one hour," I retorted. "Nah that would be too boring," quipped the inimitable Khan. You can never have the last word with him.

Akshay Kumar: One of the biggest pranksters in showbiz is the only man who can make a fool of me. On the phone he has impersonated everything from a Bihari politician seeking favours to an aspiring star wanting to be written about..and has got me completely fooled. The action man has the softest heart in the world. He must also be my touchiest star-friend.

A careless line or a snappy jokey snippet can put him in a deep sulk. Shooting in Canada right now, he's I think, upset about something or the other. When I called him to wish him on his birthday he was neither his usual jokey self, nor was he curt. He was just...aloof. In other words, hurt.

Abhishek Bachchan: On the sets he's wacky wild jokey and uncontrollable. But under the veneer of prankishness Abhishek is fiercely sensitive and a loyal friend. The only time he has ever been cross with me was when I made fun of one of his director-pals for making an unwatchable flop.

For a couple of days he refused to speak to me. "I've feelings too, y'know," he admonished me later. " The director might not be as successful as some of your filmmaker-friends. But he's my friend. And that's all that counts." Says a lot about Abhishek's sense of propriety and his undying loyalty to those whom he befriends.

Raveena Tandon: A warm bang-on pal....And the only heroine whom leading men were afraid to make a pass at. "It was very simple. Right from the start I became my leading men's buddy. I remember only one incident where one of my leading men made a pass at me.

I quickly shouted across the set, 'Hey guys, guess what he just said to me?' That was the end of my hero's fantasies. Kitne pass kitne crude," she laughs loudly. Incidentally she's my only rakhi-sister in Bollywood with the prettiest baby I've ever seen.

Kareena Kapoor: Wild, untameable, unpredictable??....Sure, she's all of that. But she's also got a golden heart, that gorgeous girl. I will never forget how she landed up at the airport to meet me for the first time. The visual of her running towards me across the airport exit clutching the most beautiful bouquet

of roses I had ever seen will remain with me as one of those montages that pass through the mind when Yamaraj does his number . Mercurial? Yes. But Kareena is one of her kind. She epitomizes mercurial womanhood. But when you see her in love the glow on her face and the confidence in her gait are a sight to behold.

When it comes to love Kareena becomes surprisingly submissive. None of the infamous Kapoor temper- tantrums. See Shahid and Kareena together...and you'll immediately know who's in-charge.

Sushmita Sen:The warmest gal I've ever met also has the shortest attention span I've encountered. One day Sushmita embraces you as though you're her best friend. The next day she has a memory lapse, leaving you wondering if it's something you've done. Or is it just one of those things that stars do to feel like stars? I haven't a clue.

Sushmita is also gentleness personified with her staff. Whether it's her driver or the lady who comes to do her hair she's solicitous snd sensitive without being patronizing. But if you want to see Sushmita at her best see her with her daughter Renee.

To Be Continued...