THE competition to capture Hollywood supestars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in camera took an ugly turn when their convoy knocked down a student who was riding a motorcycle on the busy Senapati Bapat Road on Wednesday evening. Eyewitnesses said the vehicles were trying to dodge international paparazzi when the incident took place.
They said the convoy of Pitt and Jolie also jumped the signals on Senapati Bapat Road and after knocking down the two-wheeler driver sped away without stopping. Though no one was injured, the motorcycle was damaged.
The student, Mittal Rawat (19), has reported the incident to the Janwadi police chowki.
Mittal told Pune Newsline that he was riding towards Vaikunth Mehta Chowk from Symbiosis’ direction at around 5 pm when the incident took place. ‘‘Two vehicles — Toyota Innovas — were also proceeding in the same direction and tried to overtake me. One of the vehicles brushed against my motorcycle and I fell down. Both the vehicles sped away without stopping,’’ he said.
Mittal said the accident took place while the driver was trying to dodge other vehicles that were trying to overtake him.
Eyewitness Nikhil George, a student who was also riding on his motorcycle, said the two vehicles had jumped the signal at the Senapati Bapat chowk. ‘‘Soon after jumping the signal, one of the four-wheelers hit the motorcycle. The rider and a girl riding pillion fell down, but had a narrow escape,’’ he said.
George said they followed the cars till Sindh Society. ‘‘The cars entered inside the Sindh Society, but when we tried to follow them, the securitymen at the society prevented us from entering,’’ he said.
One of the drivers in the convoy confirmed to Pune Newsline that the vehicle that knocked down the student was part of Pitt and Jolie’s convoy. He said neither Pitt nor Jolie were inside the car that knocked down the student. ‘‘It was the car carrying the securitymen,’’ he said.
Mittal, who stays at flat number A9 at Kunal Residency at Thergaon, is a third year BSc student with H V Desai College. Son of an ex-serviceman running a security agency in Ahmedabad, Mittal stays at Thergaon with his younger brother, who studies at Shri Shivaji Preparatory Military School.
Mittal’s father Manmohan Singh had come to Pune to meet his sons when the accident took place. ‘‘I spoke to Mittal on phone after coming to know about the accident. Thankfully, he is not hurt,’’ Manmohan Singh added.