When Ranbir Kapoor was asked to ‘get lost’ Natalie Portman, Robert De Niro looked the other way at his query

Actor Ranbir Kapoor is media shy himself, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t used to get excited about meeting his favourite celebrities. Ranbir recalled in a 2016 appearance on The Kapil Sharma Show that he once saw Natalie Portman on the streets of New York, and asked her for a photograph. The experience wasn’t pleasant for either of them, because Ranbir didn’t notice that she was crying, and when he did, it was already too late. She told him to ‘get lost’.
Ranbir admitted that he felt heart-broken as a fan, but that he didn’t let the experience tarnish his impression of the Oscar-winning actor.

“Main New York ki sadak pe chal raha tha. Main bhaag raha tha actually, mujhe bohot zor ki bathroom aa rahi thi. Main bhaag raha tha hotel ki taraf aur woh phone pe baat karte hue aise guzar rahi thi. Nazar mili toh maine socha, ‘Yaar, yeh toh Natalie Portman hai.’ Toh main ghoom ke bhaag ke aaya aur kaha, ‘Ek photo, ek photo’ (I was running on the streets of New York, towards my hotel, because I wanted to use the restroom. And I noticed her passing , talking on the phone. I realised that she was Natalie Portman so I turned around, ran to her and asked for a picture),” he said. He then noticed that she had been crying, which is when she told her to ‘get lost’.
Ranbir continued, “Par aisa nahi hai ki main kuch kum fan ban gaya. Kal bhi agar woh mujhe sadak pe mil jaaye, toh main bolunga, ‘Ek photo, ek photo’ (It is not like this made me any less of a fan than I already was. If I bumped into her on the street tomorrow, I would again ask her for a picture).”

This wasn’t Ranbir’s only disappointing encounter with a Hollywood celebrity. In a chat with the now-defunct comedy collective AIB, Ranbir recalled when a bunch of excited Bollywood personalities were invited to meet the legendary Robert De Niro. “He was wondering what is happening,” Ranbir said. “He wasn’t saying anything. He didn’t give a rat’s a** who we were. We were asking him about Taxi Driver, and we had all these intelligent questions, and all he did was look the other way. So my impression of Robert De Niro is not so great anymore,” Ranbir said.
After a gap of four years, Ranbir will finally be seen on the big screen this year–first in Shamshera, and then in Brahmastra. Natalie Portman will next be seen in Thor: Love and Thunder.