Julian Bharti, son of a Canadian billionaire, hit the headlines when he paid £50,000 for the chance to lock lips with Elizabeth Hurley, at Sir Elton John’s charity fundraiser for AIDS. But, kisses being auctioned for a good cause are nothing new. In 2006, Sir Phillip Green, the man who owns Topshop, paid £60,000 for the opportunity to kiss supermodel Kate Moss. Robert Pattinson too was convinced by Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein to kiss at amFAR gala in 2009. And the highest bidders for him (£40,000) were two teenage girls; who had to settle with kisses on their cheek. Actors Hugh Grant, George Clooney and Daniel Craig have also been part of such fundraisers.
But this is not something you should do spontaneously, well, unless you are single. Julian Bharti, a married father of three, took his father’s and then his wife’s permission before going ahead to bid for the kiss with Liz Hurley. Unlike Bharti’s wife, Sir Phillip Green’s spouse Tina was not a fan of her husband kissing Kate Moss, even if it was for a good cause. So Green, then offered this opportunity to the second highest bidder of the night Jemima Khan, who went on to snog Kate.
