Aap ki Rai, Sarkar...

 

 

How was it working for Sarkar Raj where two other Bachchans shared screen space with you?
We have done films together earlier, but this was our first as a family. When we are in front of the camera, we get into the character and after the shoot we are one happy family again. It’s a great film, made exactly the way Ramu envisioned it.

Your last release Jodhaa Akbar’s making took about two years; those two years have been quite eventful in your personal life as well. Tell us how has the journey been so far considering you even took a break for your marriage?
It was a really short break. And the greatest compliment I got was from Ashutosh when I came back after a short break post marriage. He said nothing has changed about you. You are just the same person. People usually expect some changes in a girl following her wedding. As for the film, I was thrilled to be part of the experience.

Does being Mrs. Bachchan in any way influence your choice of film projects?
Well, I have always been very picky about the kind of films I take up, so I don’t see it as an instant thing or a change that has come in after my marriage with Abhishek.

So what went wrong with Karan Johar’s film?
I’ll tell you why I backed out of Karan’s film. This film was to star Abhishek, John, me and now I think even Bobby has become part of this project. Now I had signed this film before I got married. Initially we were very excited about working together and so we went ahead. But then, after we got married, some factors had to be taken into consideration. Abhishek’s role in this film was great and we knew he will be great in that film, but anyone could do the girl’s role; so Abhishek and I discussed it at length and decided that I would back out from this film. When I say this I don’t mean that we have to be husband and wife in all the films we do together. In fact that holds true for all four of us at home, where we don’t really need to play our real life relationships onscreen, but while working together we can’t play something that will look ridiculous. So I need to look at films and scripts with a keener eye.

You began your career as a super model and then went on to win the title of Miss World in 1994.What motivated you to a career on screen?
Frankly, people were very generous and were inviting me. I refrained for two years – that has been the pattern of my life for everything, starting from modelling to Miss India and then films. In fact, even for the pageant I declined for about a year, but then because of the peer pressure and the kind of faith people had in me, I took it up. Everyone seemed to believe in me. I did modelling more as a hobby while I was pursuing my studies. And then by the grace of god, and people’s love and response which has been overwhelming, everything snowballed to this magnitude. Did you have any apprehensions about getting into films? Was it a conscious decision for you?
It wasn’t just a thing on the side. Movies was a conscious decision. After Miss World, I took a break from architecture, which is what I was studying. The pageant took me abroad. When I returned the kind of I response I got – being felicitated in my college etc – made me realise that somehow, with all this media attention, I was not a regular student anymore. Then movies had been beckoning me for two years and so were a lot of top directors; best of the best from the industry seemed to believe in me and that made me change my mind. I thought ‘okay, let me do this’.

How was it facing the camera for the very first time?
Oh…On the sets of my first film ever, that too with Mani Ratnam, I thoroughly enjoyed and realised instantly that I truly enjoyed the craft of cinema. I must say, God and people brought me to it. Am glad things have been going great.

Tell us about your thoughts when you were crowned Miss World. How did you deal with all that sudden fame and popularity?
Ahh…didn’t quite believe it…cherished it, respected it, embraced it; it didn’t become the fulcrum of my existence, though. I didn’t splurge on it. I don’t regard it as the motivational factor; what keeps me going is the constant appetite for work and the child in me; the curious child who wants to constantly explore and discover something new each day. I have to thank my family for being such a blessing in my life. They’ve been such a grounding force and I thank them for all…

Do you work hard on the roles that are offered to you or is it your talent which plays more of a role?
I have never been able to describe it. I am hard working and I get compliments that on the sets I become that character – that’s a personal victory. The ability to become the vision of the director is something I give lot of importance to and that, to me, is very very precious.

Miss World; ‘one of the most beautiful woman in the world’; one of the world’s “100 Most Influential People” according to Time magazine in 2004; appearances on Time cover and the Late Show with David Letterman, and Oprah’s “Women Across the Globe” segment, Bollywood queen… What more does Aishwarya want?
Let’s see what the future holds… Life is beautiful and there’s lot more to discover and I am living each day as it comes.

Honestly, tell me... how different is Aishwarya Rai from Aishwarya Bachchan?
Are you married? Ahhh…then welcome to wherever you are!! It’s a wonderful feeling. I am thankful to God that I have got such a wonderful man and family. My in-laws are just like my parents and I just don’t feel that I have gone into a new family. Abhishek and I keep saying that we have two sets of parents. It’s like what my home has always been and I must add that I am very very blessed. As a working girl, life has become that much more hectic. I can’t imagine getting more minutes in a day. Marriage was a conscious decision and I always knew it will take a lot of prioritising. It’s a relationship which will take a lot of nurturing and I will do it. I am completely committed to give it all I can. I am trying to find the balance and I know there is right way of doing it. It is a life long thing…