'Because of Salman, she got to work with the right people'

It was former supermodel and choreographer Alison Kanuga, who got Katrina introduced to Salman at his sister Alvira's birthday party at Salman's apartment.
"She met Salman for the very first time at Alvira's birthday party. Since Katrina and I were already friends I asked her to come along with me to the party," says Alison, who met Katrina at a film screening in Mumbai.
Salman, who was then distraught after parting ways with Aishwarya Rai, took an instant liking to her and the duo ended up spending the entire evening together. That chance meeting led to another and in a matter of few days Salman was wooing Katrina. Soon they were in a serious relationship.
Whenever she got off work early, Katrina rushed to meet her boyfriend at film studios and his apartment. They started hanging out at coffee shops in Bandra, and going for long walks with Salman's pet dogs Myson and Myjaan along the Bandstand promenade. But what she enjoyed the most was taking bike rides with her boyfriend in the wee hours of the morning. As their love became stronger, Salman started supervising her, while she was readying to move from modelling to films.
"By then she was already a popular name in the modelling circuit. She thought that making a progression to films will be a good idea," says an industry insider.
It was only under Salman's guidance that she clinched a big role opposite him in brother Sohail Khan's production, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya in 2005. The film made good business at the box office and her chemistry with Salman prompted other filmmakers to woo her with film scripts.
Director David Dhawan, who was looking for a fresh face for MPKK, signed her on instantly once he met her. He says, "Yes, I met her through Salman. She had a fresh face and she suited the role. [Also] She has a great memory. Even though she wasn't well versed in the language, she used to mug her lines very well."
Filmmaker and president of AMPTPP (Association of Motion Pictures and TV Program Producers), Pahlaj Nihalani, who met Katrina when she was running from pillar to post to get her visa extended, attributes UK-citizen Katrina's stupendous success to Salman Khan and his family.
He says, "Because of Salman she got to work with the right people and in the right manner... I will give full credit to Salman and his family for providing her with shelter, professional advice and guidance."
With her family away in London, she started confiding in and socialising with Salman's family members. "They are a part of the social circle that I move in. They are tremendously wonderful people," says Katrina, who is particularly fond of her beau's siblings Alvira Khan Agnihotri and Sohail Khan.