Nayantara's ouster from the celebrity brand ambassador status of IPL's Chennai Superkings team has had a surprise effect on south Indian film industry. Actresses who, until now, didn't even know the difference between a wicket stump and a cricket bat, have suddenly become very seriously interested in the game.

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IPL's 20-20 series isn't the first cricket match to be played in Chennai. So many matches had been played in the city before. You might find an occasional actor or two from the Tamil cine industry turning up to watch the matches. There hardly used to be any actress in the stadium.

Suddenly, all the actresses are now rushing to the cricket stadiums in the evenings to catch the 20-20 series. First there was Asin. Then there were some other heroines too. Now, controversial and scandal-prone Lakshmi Rai has suddenly become inseparable from the games.

She recently had her birthday. In the morning, she went to an orphanage and celebrated her birthday with the kids. But it was the special evening party that made headlines for its guest-list.

Rumors claim that most members of the 20-20 Superkings team were present at the party. The team's captain was on the receiving end of special attention. Since he is going through a bad love failure, he would indeed have enjoyed the privilege treatment.