Banderas takes a shine to Mallika Sherawat in midst of divorce rumors

MARIA SAEED

KARACHI: As rumours of a rift between Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith swell, a video of Banderas dancing with Indian actress Mallika Sherawat will surely add fuel to fire.

The footage was widely distributed today and shows the Spanish actor dancing alongside the Bollywood star during the Cannes Film Festival in June aboard Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen's boat.

There's a rumor on the street that there's a crack in Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith's marriage that he's trying to fix. The "Desperado" actor reportedly is fighting to save his marriage in the wake of reports of his longtime affairs.

But Mallika's stylist Ivan Bitton said, “Antonio was very attracted to Mallika and you can see that from the video. Antonio grabbed her from behind, and he was really into the dance. I could hear Antonio telling Mallika how beautiful she was.”

According to an Indian website, Mallika's “people” say the conversation ranged from Bollywood to Spanish director Pedro Almodovar, with whom Banderas often works.

Antonio “also invited Mallika to Spain to visit his country”, the site said.

News of separation surfaced when Griffith, 54, was seen in Los Angeles last week without her wedding ring, although she was seen wearing it when she attended the Munich Film Festival by herself.

But the spokespeople came forward to clarify the martial status between actor Antonio Banderas and actress Melanie Griffith. "They seem absolutely fine. Honestly, they seem happy," a source close to the couple told the media.

Banderas is currently filming a movie in Budapest.

“They'll be together again as soon as he's done," another source said. "They really are very happy together."

The couple met in 1995 while filming the movie “Two Much”.