Mumbai: Bollywood’s green-eyed beauty and world’s most beautiful actress Aishwarya Rai turned 41 on Saturday.
Aishwarya Rai, who won the Miss World pageant of 1994, made her Bollywood debut in 1997 with film ‘Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya’ opposite Bobby Deol.
Ash, initially, was unable to bag success with her films like Aur Pyar Ho Gaya, Aa Ab Laut Chale. However, it was Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s super successful 1999 film ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’, which earned Ash all the acclaim and accolades from the industry.
She sizzled the screen as Nandini opposite Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn. The film was seen as a turning point in Aishwarya’s filmography from where there was no looking back.
She has served Bollywood for more than 17 years and has done about 32 flicks. Amongst her long list of films, a few of her best works – apart from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam – are ‘Devdas’, ‘Guzaarish’ and ‘Jodha Akbar’.
After acting in several Bollywood films Ash scored her first international movie, ‘Bride and Prejudice’, directed by Brit-Indian talent Gurinder Chadha in 2004. Aishwarya‘s performance in the film divided critical opinion but did put her on Hollywood’s radar.
She then went on to play a battered wife in ‘Provoked’, a store keeper in ‘The Mistress Of Spices’, a warrior in ‘The Last Legion’, and a jewel thief in the big budget ‘The Pink Panther 2’, as part of an ensemble cast, which led by Steve Martin.
Her most lucrative association has been with L’Oreal for she has represented the brand at the Cannes Film Festival for 12 years, something that has helped make her India’s most famous face abroad.
Ash has also featured on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show. The actress is also associated with several noble causes. She is the UN Microcredit Spokesperson and she also supports PETA India. The talented actress married Abhishek Bachchan in 2007, and has a three-year-old baby girl named Aaradhya.