Aishwarya Rai Bachchan tells Shubha Shetty-Saha about the ‘dress rehearsal’ for her wedding, finding domestic balance and looking forward to starting a family

She seems contentment personified. Aishwarya Rai, seems extremely secure and suffers from no anxiety as she herself puts it, “I am at a point where I seem to be blinded by mush!” In a marriage which is not even a year old, perhaps no one else can relate to the love story that Jodha Akbar is, as much as Aishwarya.

Passionate about her character Jodha, Ash says, “Ashu (Gowarikar) and I made a conscious effort to try and create a character which remains regal yet simple and real. We want people to relate to the character rather than making it out of reach. When you are working with a director who is as detailed and methodical as Ashu, it makes life much more simpler. Apart from being responsible and committed, he is really a good guy. I am so glad to have discovered a friend in him.”

However, the shoot of Jodha’s wedding to Akbar was a surreal experience for Ash. She says, “I was working full throttle for Jodha Akbar just before my marriage and Ashu was concentrating on a lot of my solo shoots. We finished a large chunk of work in February and March, just before my wedding date."

"So it was amazing because here I was shooting for the wedding scenes, like the haldi ceremony and all, and I felt like it was a dress rehearsal happening for my own wedding. I have done many marriage scenes earlier, but this was special because I knew I was going to experience it in real life soon enough. Ashu kept teasing me that we are preparing you for your wedding. It was a very special feeling.”

While Jodha had to do a lot of compromise in her wedding to Akbar, Ash has a different story to say about her real life compromises.

She says with a content smile,  “God bless, Abhishek is a wonderful guy. They are a superb family. For me, Ma and Pa have been like my own mom and dad. I think it is a blessing for any girl to be married into a family where you feel so at home. Abhishek and I keep joking that when we get children —no don’t speculate I am not pregnant —but when we really do, we will be, like, propagating mera bharat mahaan. Because between ma and pa and Abhishek me and Shweta and her family, we seem to have covered the whole gamut of India!"

"Today, things have changed a bit for me in the sense I used to take my parents a lot for granted. Not that I have ever been an irresponsible daughter, but after marriage, I seem to connect with Abhishek’s family and my family a lot more than I used to. I have always believed in giving but now I seem to have much more to give. It’s a beautiful feeling.”

Ask her if she is planning to start a family soon and she says. “I am a regular girl. Motherhood is a beautiful eventuality of us having come together. Us becoming parents would be beautiful, but let’s see. Don’t speculate, I am not pregnant.”

Talking about the new school in Barabanki that carries her name Aishwarya says, “We are all very pleased that this has come about. Amar Singhji announced it last year but we were able to validate it this year. It’s just the beginning. People are bound to criticise and judge our motives but that’s fine because there is a larger section of people who are so supportive and generous with their good wishes. Even before we became family, Abhishek and I used to discuss the things we wanted to do for society. I am so glad that we share this thought in common. We feel the need to do a lot more than what we are doing.”