The latest contest in small towns is: How accurately can you foretell the sartorial details of this newest star on Bollywood's horizon and mouth his dialogues. This in turn is almost always directly linked to how many times one has watched the movie. This is just a small sampling of the unprecedented Hrithik craze sweeping the country since the release of "Kaho Na...Pyar Hai" in January this year. A craze that holds the young and old alike in its firm grip and has made "Kavita", the name of the building where the actor lives, the newest landmark in Mumbai's Juhu neighbourhood.


Ask Rashmi Mittal,a 32-year-old government employee living in Delhi and a mother of two, about her opinion on him and she enthuses: "I have watched the movie five times and each time I experience sheer exhilaration as I watch Hrithik dance." Not stopping at that, she went and bought a poster of him, which now occupies pride of place in her two-bedroom flat. 
If she can succumb to the Hrithik Roshan charm, is it surprising that the green-eyed star with bulging biceps, that oh-so-charming cleft and an endearing smile should make many a young heart skip several beats & that his maximum fan mail comes from females - reportedly averaging 300 a day. Several young men are dismayed at being dislodged from the numero uno slot of their girlfriends' hearts by Hrithik. 
Arvind Bisht a student of Delhi's Hindu College,says "All Amrita (girlfriend) talks about these days is how good Hrithik looks, how well he dances, and what a good actor he is." Many boys have had to bow down to their maidens' wishes and watch the film a couple of times. 
Like Avinash Khandekar, a student of Pune's Fergusson College, who throws up his hands in despair when he says, "I have no choice but to go with her. She got so upset when I refused once that I have not dared to voice my dissent." 
However, the two do stand testimony to columnist Shoba De's remark that "He (Hrithik) cuts across gender - men admire him and women adore him. Both sexes are rooting for him." Says Arvind, "The chap has that something extra in him," while Avinash says, "one must admit, he is really good."



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