Our Bollywood Celebrities.

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Aishwarya Rai (Ash & Gullu)
Actress
Born on 1st November, 1973

The beauteous, stylish, super sexy and the most beautiful woman in the world, Aishwarya Rai is fondly called as 'Queen of Bollywood'. With sky high ambitions, this grey-green eyed girl brought India on a world platform by winning the most coveted Miss World pageant in the year 1994. Post that, there was no looking back for Aishwarya. Many television advertisements and modeling assignments landed in her lap after winning the pageant. Many directors queued to cast her in their movies and she did her first ever movie, titled 'Iruvar' in Tamil in the year 1997. The movie opened to critical acclaim and later in that year, she was seen in her first Hindi movie titled 'Aur Pyar Ho Gaya'. The movie gave her enough limelight to get noticed amongst cinema going audience at that time.

Aishwarya's first commercial success came in the year 1998 in the form of a Tamil film titled 'Jeans' and since then, her career graph simply soared. Over the years, she has worked in many movies which allowed her to explore the various shades of acting and excel in it. Movies like, 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam' and 'Devdas' gave her the opportunity to grow as an actor whereas movies like 'Choker Bali' and 'Raincoat' proved enough to critics to call her an evolved actress and not just a model.

The year 2003 put Aishwarya on the pedestal of being renowned on the global stage. 'The most beautiful woman in the world', Aishwarya, became the first Indian actress ever, to be a jury member at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival and is now a regular attendee every year. Subsequently, she graced the covers of India Today and TIME Magazine which listed her on the list of '100 Most Influential People in the World Today'. This gave a big fillip to her Hollywood career, as she was seen in many Hollywood movies with roles that were new and challenging.

Gradually, Aishwarya rose on the popularity charts after being invited on the most watched television talk show 'The Oprah Winfrey Show'. Aishwarya became the first Indian female to have her wax statute placed at the world famous Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in London. Moreover, she is also the recipient of the fourth highest civilian award, Padma Shri, conferred by the Government of India for her contribution to Indian cinema, along with the second highest order of France, Ordredes Arts et des Lettres, thereby making her a truly prominent international personality and a global star!

Personal Details
Full Name: Aishwarya Rai

Height: 5'7"

Weight: 58 Kilograms

Body Measurements: 34-26-34

Parents: Krishnaraj Rai, Brindya Rai

Sibling: Aditya Rai

Spouse: Abhishek Bachchan

Children: Aaradhya Bachchan

Early Life
Aishwarya Rai was a simple girl next door whose ambitions kept on changing with her age. She was a bright student who excelled not only in academics but also in vocational activities. Born in Mangalore, the Rai family shifted to Mumbai and Aishwarya completed her schooling from Arya Vidya Mandir High School. She then joined DG Ruparel College and completed her HSC securing 90 percent, with her favourite subject being Zoology. Thus, she thought of building a career in medicine. Meantime, she was also learning classical dance and music. But, leaving those two aside, she enrolled herself in Rachana Sansad Academy of Architecture with plans of being an architect. However, fate had different plans for her and she eventually decided to become a model and gave up education completely.

Her modeling career got a boost when she won her very first supermodel contest organized by Ford Motor Company. She then featured in the American edition of Vogue. With her continuous hard work and dedication, she won the Miss India World title at the Miss India pageant and rose up to the stage at the Miss World pageant, winning the coveted Miss World crown. Post winning the title, there was no looking back, as she was flooded with plenty of modeling assignments, television advertisements and film offers.

Filmography & Acting Career
1997- 1998: Early Days

Aishwarya Rai made her acting debut in the year 1997 in a Tamil movie 'Iruvar' directed by Mani Ratnam. She played a double role in the movie and did a fair job. In the same year itself, she made her Bollywood debut opposite Bobby Deol in a romantic movie titled 'Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya'. Both movies failed at the box office but these movies gave Aishwarya a feel of what acting in movies is all about.

In the coming year, Aishwarya Rai gave her first hit through a Tamil romantic movie titled 'Jeans' and earned both critical acclaim and acknowledgement for her acting and dancing skills. This movie gave a much needed boost to her acting career as many directors lined up to cast her.

1999- 2001: Ladder to Success

Aishwarya's first movie in the year 1999 was 'Aa Ab Laut Chale' which was a box office disaster. She received many negative comments for her role in the movie but that did not deter her enthusiasm and determination. She was then seen in 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam' opposite Salman Khan. The movie proved to be a turning point in her career, as she overshadowed the other two lead actors and portrayed her character with ease, grace and élan. She was then seen in a musical romantic movie 'Taal' alongside Anil Kapoor and Akshaye Khanna. The movie did fair business but Aishwarya's performance was appreciated by one and all.

In the following two years she was seen in plenty of movies like 'Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hain', 'Dhai Akshar Prem Ke', 'Mohabbatein' and 'Albela'. Her performance in movies 'Hamara Dil Aapke Pass Hain' and 'Mohabbatein' was appreciated whereas she received a lot of flak for her role in the other two movies. So, it is safe to say that the years 2000 and 2001 were a mixed bag for her.

2002- 2007: Few Hits and Misses

In the year 2002, Aishwarya was seen in a love saga named 'Devdas' alongside Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit. The movie became a tremendous hit after being screened at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival and she garnered a lot of praise for her acting. Her flawless looks coupled with her superb acting in the movie meant that she sweeped all awards that year. She earned a lot of praise for portraying a dark character in a Bengali movie 'Choker Bali and got noticed too. Then came a series of mediocre roles which did not help much in her career.

The year 2004 saw her going international with the movie 'Bride and Prejudice'. Although, her beauty was appreciated by the critics, they put a question mark on her acting abilities, whereas, on the home front, she performed a de-glamorized role in the movie 'Raincoat'. The movie was well received by critics and audiences alike. Following this success, came a few duds too and she was again at the receiving end of critics.

2007 saw of the biggest blockbusters in Hindi cinema, 'Dhoom 2', where Aishwarya was seen in a highly glamorized role alongside a huge star cast. But, again, she could not win the hearts of the critics and received lot of flak for her poor acting. On the other hand, came a lovely performance from her in the movie 'Guru', where many termed it as one of her finest performances. She also did a few Hollywood movies during the period and her performance in the movie 'Provoked' earned her critical acclaim.

2008- 2010: The Trend Continues

Aishwarya's first movie of the year 2008, 'Jodha Akbar' earned her both box office and critical success where her acting was highly appreciated. Many critics termed it as one of her finest performances on-screen. The movie 'Sarkar Raj' saw her playing the role of a business woman and her performance was liked by critics. Then came a series of flops with 'Pink Panther 2', a Hollywood movie, 'Raavan' and 'Action Replayy'. There wasn't much to talk about her performance in these movies. The Tamil movie 'Enthiran' minted money, but again her acting was not appreciated. Finally, she gave a stupendous performance in 'Guzaarish' and was termed as a top notch performance.

2015- Present: Work After Sabbatical

After a five year hiatus, Aishwarya decided to be back on-screen with a thriller 'Jazbaa' and it seemed to be a welcome break for her. Her performance was appreciated all round. Later, she was seen in a biopic named 'Sarbjit' where she gave a stellar performance playing an old Sikh woman.

Upcoming Movies: Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and Baadshaho

Biggest Hit Movies:

Devdas
Jodhaa Akbar
Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
Dhoom 2
Guru
Mohabbatein
Taal
Sarbjit

Hit Songs:

Nimbooda from movie 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam'
Aankhon Ki Gustakhiyan from movie 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam'
Humko Humise Chura Lo from movie 'Mohabbatein'
Dola Re Dola from movie 'Devdas'
Wada Raha from movie 'Khakhee'
Crazy Kiya Re from movie 'Dhoom 2'
Barso Re from movie 'Guru'
Tere Bina from movie 'Guru'
Bandeyaa from movie 'Jazbaa'
Awards
Aishwarya Rai has won lots of laurels and recognition since her Femina Miss India and Miss World days. She has received plenty of awards from top organizations and magazines and still continues to receive them. The tally is now over 100. Not only that, there is a list of national as well as international honours and recognition to her name, thus reiterating her status as a true global star and celebrity.
The following are some of the awards that she has won:

Filmfare:

Best Actress Award for Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam in 2000 and Devdas in 2003

International Indian Film Academy Awards:

IIFA Global Indian Media Personality Award in the year 2005
IIFA Star of the Decade- Female and IIFA Outstanding Achievement by an Indian in International Cinema in the year 2009
Controversies
The timeless beauty, Aishwarya Rai, has been marred with plenty of controversies surrounding her personal and professional life and seems like she has it all covered. Some of them are:

The Aishwarya and Salman Khan saga, where she dumped him with reasons of physical and mental abuse.
Vivek Oberoi’s infamous press conference stating that Salman Khan had called him 41 times and threatened him each time. Aishwarya, who was dating Vivek then, immediately broke off with him citing that Vivek is too immature.
Rift between herself and Shah Rukh Khan during the shooting of the movie 'Chalte Chalte', as Salman Khan used to drop by the sets to meet her. This resulted in Shah Rukh Khan replacing Aishwarya from the movie.
A steamy kiss scene with Hrithik Roshan in the movie 'Dhoom 2' did not go down well with her then boyfriend Abhishek Bachchan and his family.
Cat fight with Sonam Kapoor, who is keen to replace her on the international stage at The Cannes Film Festival. Apparently she did not allow Sonam Kapoor to walk the red carpet and this resulted in Sonam calling her 'aunty'.
Facing a lot of flak for not losing post pregnancy weight gain even after one year of delivery.
Her questionable choice of wardrobe and accessories at The Cannes Film Festival over the years has been made fun off.
Other Information
Brand Ambassador:

Aishwarya Rai was first seen in Camlin pencils advertisement when she was in standard 9. After achieving recognition post her modeling and acting career, Aishwarya has been the brand ambassador of many brands. The prominent ones being:

Pepsi
Coca Cola
Titan watches
Longines watches
L'Oreal
Lakme
Lux
Philips
Kalyan Jewellers

Along with these, Aishwarya has also been a brand ambassador for many social causes and campaigns such as:

Pulse Polio to eradicate Polio in India
The Eye Bank Association of India to promote eye donation where she has even pledged to donate her eyes

Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) as a Goodwill Ambassador

Contribution in social causes:

Aishwarya Rai has always been at the forefront when it comes to charity and social causes. The main reason for her association with many social causes is her global appeal that is capable of drawing people to contribute for charity. Over the years, Aishwarya has contributed to many social causes such as:

Participating and performing with other Bollywood actors and actresses at the HELP! Telethon Concert to raise money for the victims of 2004 Tsunami earthquake.
Laying the foundation stone and funding a special school for underprivileged girls along with her family members in a small village named Daulatpur in Uttar Pradesh.
Supporting PETA India in their various causes.
Building Aishwarya Rai Foundation to help the needy.

She is the spokesperson of UN Microcredit and was the first goodwill ambassador of Smile Train, an international charity organization that provides free Cleft lip and palate surgery for children. For her tremendous contribution to social causes, Aishwarya was presented with 'Lifetime beauty with a purpose award' at the World Miss 2014 event.

Picture and content sources:mobango.com