Sugar Tuesday

Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai has dazzled film goers in her roles as a rape victim, a devout lover and a classically trained dancer. Now, as Hollywood takes notice, Aishwarya gears up for a new challenge, the North American audience.

Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai has dazzled film goers in her roles as a rape victim, a devout lover and a classically trained dancer. Now, as Hollywood takes notice, Aishwarya gears up for a new challenge, the North American audience.

Legends can cast long shadows. It took years for Aishwariya Rai to emerge from under the shadow of her Miss World crown. But she has blossomed in the recent past, earning appreciation with unprecedented box-office successes, such as ‘Taal’, ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’, ‘Choker Bali’ and ‘Devdas’, which gave her the impetus to cross over to Hollywood. Yes, Aishwariya Rai has been Bollywood’s leading lady for years, but now, with international films in her kitty, she is on the brink of global stardom.

I first met Aishwariya Rai at the premiere of ‘Bride and Prejudice’. She had stood onstage, giggling self-consciously and seeming a bit ill at ease beside her larger-than-life producer-director Gurinder Chadha. Later that evening, she was basking in the compliments. But she was professional and accommodating, if a little severe when the photographers requested a ‘sexy pose’. In some ways, her self-consciousness and timidity seem more appropriate to a younger, sheltered girl. But then she will tell you that she has a lunch date with her co-star the following afternoon, and you’re reminded that this is an actress whose film career has spanned a decade – from the girl who was told she looked like a plastic doll following her insipid debut in ‘Aur Pyar Ho Gaya’, to bagging the Filmfare Best Actress Award for ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’ and ‘Devdas’, and now a string of International films.

She had refused to comment on her personal life and did not relax until the media retired from the banquet hall of the hotel –- then she talked about her passion for films, how she was in awe of the ‘Big B’, and was visibly amused when the tight dress worn by a starlet began to ride her thigh as a result of her acrobatics on the dance floor!

She is, incase you hadn’t noticed, in case she didn’t want to notice, the toast of Bollywood, Hollywood, the advertising industry, and one of the highest paid actresses. While her agents are marketing her in Hollywood as “something special”, she’s wary of the press snooping into her life. And this is why, as I’m sitting alone in this lounge bar today, listening to her voicemail, I dread she’s decided to give our dialogue a miss. But when she finally calls back, she’s full of apologies. She’d had a very rough day juggling a handful of relatives and an arduous shoot, and while I was leaving frantic messages, Ash was catching a powernap!

I try to subtly steer the conversation to a more personal level. Is it easier dating actors, I wonder? Do they understand you better? [It’s a veiled reference to her alleged relationship with Abhishek Bachchan.] ‘’I wouldn’t think so,’’ she reacts. ‘’You don’t have to be an actor to understand a woman’s mind. In the short term, it can be reassuring since you have a lot in common but it doesn’t always lead to a relationship ... you’re a journalist; would you consider going out with another member of the press because of the common ground?’’

All this time, it’s been easy to define Aishwariya Rai: after bagging the Miss World title, she appeared on the film radar effortlessly. But that’s not spot on. ‘’People think it is a carefully choreographed move on my part, to enter Hollywood. In fact, the media seems to believe I calculate every move. But for me, it’s not about breaking big on foreign ground; it’s about interesting experiences. In 2003, I had meetings with Robert de Niro, Roland Joffe and Mike Leigh. They’d ask, “When are you available? And I had honestly replied, “After a year. My approach isn’t really to sign International projects at the expense of my Indian films; it’s to treat each experience individually for what it is worth, irrespective of which country. I enjoy working in different kinds of films, be it British, Hindi, Tamil or Bengali.”

“Today, I have the time to explore new ground. I have become very choosy about the films I sign because I want to work with filmmakers who can enhance the actress in me and who can teach me something. I’m not here to make a quick buck; I like to involve myself in the whole process of filmmaking: editing, direction, and post-production work”, she continues.

Ash recalls how, as a novice, she was given a hard time. “The first film I signed was the popular Tamil movie ‘Iruvar’ [1997], directed by Mani Ratnam. Although my early films made money at the box-office, the critics commented that my performances were stiff, as if I were still modelling.” Did you see yourself as an outsider, I asked. “I’ve always felt like an outsider,” she admits. “People used to take potshots due to my Miss World status. I was even referred to as a soulless mannequin! But, I think rather than feeling persecuted that I was meeting up with a challenge simply because of a handful of critics, I think it’s important to face the challenge. I had to work very hard to prove myself.”

Today Aishwariya Rai is ranked among the most talented actresses of her time. Her last few releases are testimony to her acting prowess. Her role in ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’ won her critical acclaim. ‘Devdas’ had film buffs exclaiming that she had better chemistry with Shah Rukh Khan than his love angle, Madhuri Dixit. And her stellar role in crossover film ‘Bride and Prejudice’ won her more accolades than she could ask for.

In 2003, Rai was a member of the jury at Cannes. In 2004, she was chosen by TIME Magazine’s Asian Edition as one of Asia’s ‘100 Most Influential People.’ A month later she appeared on the ‘Late Show with David Letterman’, and in April 2005, she was featured on Oprah Winfrey’s ‘Women Across the Globe’ segment. A wax statue of Ash is on display in Madame Tussaud’s museum. However, she describes fame as a lonely business, adding, “Box-office success leads to premieres, film festivals, and press conferences, which means there is hardly any time for my close friends and family. I have remained sane due to my absolute faith in God. But, don’t get me wrong here; I am not complaining about the pressure! I can do something else if it gets to me. I doubt it will, though.”

This kind of declaration is exactly why Aishwariya Rai is hard to pin down. You’re left speculating if she always felt this way or if her outlook has been shaped as a result of bad relationships. She is loathe to go into details, but when she does talk about relationships, you get an insight into her battle the wide-eyed idealism of her teenage years and the actuality of living. It’s this internal struggle, I suppose, that makes her so alluring to men. “Sometimes a relationship doesn’t work out, and that’s the way it is.”

The catch for Ash has always been her tumultuous relationships. Recently, she was at the hub of a media maelstrom, with ex-boyfriend Salman Khan threatening to murder beau Vivek Oberoi, who promptly dispensed the news to the media! Staying clear of the men in her life, our conversation veers toward her lookalike Sneha Ullal – a Salman Khan protégé. Ash is diplomacy incarnate: “I wish her success,” she says, continuing, “Some critics say there is a likeness, others disagree. Few have even commented that her styling was done deliberately to create a strong resemblance. It is all about perception.”

Just in case you’re thinking Aishwariya is coming across as too soft or vulnerable, she’s noticeably proud of her achievements, but self-conscious at being seen enjoying the glamour of it all. But if she is in a good mood, she’ll tell you of how she and Amitabh Bachchan shared a rapport while working on the item number in ‘Bunty and Babli’, and that his son Abhishek is an ‘excellent actor’. And when I ask Ash if she has a bigger trailer these days due to her star status, she says, “Not as big as theirs [Bachchans] but of course, it’s a big trailer!” And that’s as far as she’s prepared to go!

She’s more comfortable relating anecdotes, which is exactly what she does, until we hang up. As I switch on my laptop to document the conversation, I’m reminded of something she’d said earlier. ‘’Soon as people recognise you as an ‘actress,’ they think you’ve got it easy. That’s what I want to rebel against,’’ she explains. And that’s what Aishwariya Rai is about: escaping her larger-than-life screen image but always pulled back into it ...