Katrina is an Item Girl in Tees Maar Khan

Katrina Kaif, arguably the most bankable Bollywood star at the moment is all set to play an item girl in her new film 'Tees Maar Khan'. Katrina has been cast opposite Akshay Kumar in the film, which is directed by Farah Khan and produced by her husband Shirish Kunder.

"Yes, Katrina is playing a wannabe item girl in `Tees Maar Khan`. Beyond that I can`t reveal much about her character at this stage," producer Shirish Kunder told reporters. Kunder also wrote the screenplay of Tees Maar Khan, he said that casting the right girl was a tough decision, but that they zeroed in on Katrina considering her chemistry with Akshay. "There isn`t any Southall connection to Katrina`s character in the film. Instead she came in primarily due to her overall appearance which just fitted in perfectly with the requirement of the character. We were looking for somebody like her and ultimately settled for her only," Kunder said.

Tees Maar Khan hits theaters on 24th December, a date which had locked by Aamir Khan since the past three years Taare Zameen Par (2007), Ghajini (2008) and 3 Idiots (2009). "Farah and I are mighty excited to start shooting for the film, beginning 1st March. `Tees Maar Khan` would belong to Farah Khan brand of film, as established after `Om Shanti Om` and `Main Hoon Naa`. You would certainly be aware about the language that she talks," Kunder said. "Her films are meant to be complete masala entertainers that cater to all segments of audiences and `Tees Maar Khan` does exactly that. I am so convinced that we have the best case scenario here with her donning the hat of the director and I running the film`s production," he added.

Katrina had dropped out of the other Akshay Kumar project, 'Thank You' (Sonam Kapoor replaced her in that film). 'Tees Maar Khan' it would be the seventh (or is it eight?) time Akki and Katrina share screen space. The duo have appeared in Namaste London, Welcome, Singh is Kinng, Blue and most recently De Dana Dan. All of the above films have made large wads of cash, even though most were critically ravaged. In 'Tees Maar Khan' (note the pun) Akshay plays a guy named 'Khan' who is a modish international con man. Reportedly, Akki will sport a polished, urbane look for the film.