Mumbai, July 31 (IANS) The theme of the Mallika Sherawat-Ranvir Shorey starrer 'Ugly Aur Pagli', releasing Friday, bears an uncanny resemblance to a 2001 Korean romantic comedy 'My Sassy Girl' in which a man accidentally meets a drunken bully of a girl who changes his life.

Like the Korean film, 'Ugly Aur Pagli' is told from the male protagonist's viewpoint. But Ranvir denies similarities, saying: 'To the extent that the girl is a bully and the man takes her bullying meekly. But beyond that I see no similarities between the two films.'

Apart from the lead pair, the film also stars '70s reigning queen Zeenat Aman in a cameo. She plays a matchmaker in the romantic comedy and will be seen ironing out the gruff spots between the couple on the warpath.

Zeenat reluctantly agreed to come into the plot at the fag end.

'That's right. Zeenat comes right at the end of the film. I had to pinch myself when I saw her. Come on, she's the ultimate diva! My absolutely favourite crush. I used to dream about being in the same frame with her,' Ranvir told IANS.

Zeenat plays a common friend of Ranvir and Mallika's families who comes into the picture only to bail the couple out. Apparently Mallika, who has always hero-worshipped Zeenat, couldn't contain her excitement.

For Ranvir, working with Zeenat was like a dream come true.

'After being slapped around by Mallika, I suddenly had Zeenat pinching and patting my cheeks. It was surreal. A dream come true. All my colleagues look at me with envious eyes now.'

Commenting on Mallika, Ranvir said: 'Mallika and I had a lot of differences. But we also managed to find a comfort level. The problem is, she had to slap me repeatedly and she just didn't know how to do it. Either she'd slap and start acting so guilty I had to pacify her, or the slaps weren't convincing enough.

'I had to sit her down and explain the art of slapping to her. I must be the only guy in the world prodding a girl to hit him.'