Aishwarya honoured with Abhinaya Kaala Ratna Award

Bollywood actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been honoured with the Pazhassi Raja Purashkaram 'Abhinaya Kaala Ratna' award.

The award is instituted by the Pazhassi Raja Charitable Trust, which was formed in the memory of freedom fighter Veera Pazhassi Raja.

Other recipients of the award this year included Lata Mangeshkar and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Earlier, the award has been conferred only on Amitabh Bachchan from the Hindi film industry, a statement from Aishwarya's spokesperson said.

The 37-year-old actress, who is pregnant with her first child, could not attend the award distribution ceremony. But in a message, she said she was dedicating it to "every professional I have worked with... all my audiences in India and the world... and my family".