She has never admitted to being in a relationship with Ranbir Kapoor. Chances are, Katrina Kaif will never talk about her 'heartship' either. After months of dodging the media and going for surreptitious dinner and movie dates, Ranbir and Katrina may have just hit an all-time low in their affair. This despite the fact that they were recently spotted stepping out of the Kapoor mansion in Bandra, looking pleased as punch.
Sources close to the actress say the relationship is going through considerable wear and tear. And their respective professional commitments are largely to blame. "Katrina has been busy with Dhoom 3, and will fly out again for Bang Bang.
Ranbir has had his hands full initially with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and now Besharm. It has been tough maintaining a long-distance relationship," said a source privy to their lives. The two did manage to spend some time together, whether in New York, or in Mumbai, but for Katrina, it was not enough.
"She is a very old fashioned girl when it comes to matters of the heart. She believes in commitment and with Ranbir, she had always been held back by the classic conflict between the head and the heart," says the source.
Katrina, who was well aware of Ranbir's charming ways with women, embraced the relationship against her better judgement. "She was aware of his legacy, but she was way too much in love with him to take any practical decision. But what made things worse was Ranbir's propensity to cut himself off from those who care for him," said the source. Apparently, Ranbir goes aloof when shooting away from the city, does not return calls or respond to messages. "It is enough to drive any woman insane," the source added.
The flashpoint in the relationship has been Ranbir's decision to work with Deepika in Yeh Jawaani... and their chemistry which is being cleverly leveraged by the filmmakers.
The first promo of the Ayan Mukerji film has been cut smartly to end with Deepika giving Ranbir the Bambi-eyes and saying: "...Mujhe tumse pyaar ho jayega....phir se." And with cynics finding plenty of loopholes in Ranveer Singh's love story with Dippy, there is enough and more room for speculation.
Even if Katrina was not happy at the thought of Ranbir working with his ex-flame, her argument lost its teeth once Ranbir pointed out that he was okay with her working with Salman in Ek Tha Tiger. But Katrina, who has never spared any effort to keep the magic alive in her relationship with Ranbir, has decided to put Ranbir to the classic love-test - she had decided to step back and see if RK is committed enough to walk the talk.
"Contrary to what people may think of her, deep down Katrina is just a simple girl, who wants nothing more than a loving family and a caring man to come home to," says a friend of the actress. It remains to be seen if that man is Ranbir Kapoor.
Meanwhile...
Call it a simple twist of fate, or what you will, but Katrina may have just lost out an opportunity to work with Ranbir Kapoor again. Buzz is, Imtiaz Ali is keen to cast Deepika in his next film starring Ranbir. If this works out, it could just add some unseemly frown lines on Kat's pretty brow.