The life and loves of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, 37

Aishwarya Rai, 37 on November 1, started a love affair with the Indian public when she appeared in a commercial for Pepsi, starring alongside Aamir Khan and Mahima Choudhary.
In 1994, the young architecture student entered the Miss India contest; a strong favourite to win, she lost to the relatively unknown Delhi model Sushmita Sen in a shock defeat. (SUPPLIED)
But the judges proved prescient. Later that year, Rai becamse India’s first Miss World since the sixties – months after Sen became the first Indian woman to win the Miss Universe crown, handing post-liberalisation India an unprecedented double victory. (SUPPLIED)
After several years of modelling, endorsing brands such as Palmolive, Casio, Philips and Sheetal Diva, she accepted her first film, ‘Iruvar’ (1997), with the highly feted director Mani Ratnam. The film was a critical success. (SUPPLIED)
She made her Bollywood debut the following year, opposite Bobby Deol in “Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya”, a critical and commercial failure. However, her third project, S Shankar's Tamil film, “Jeans” (1998) was a commercial success, provoking speculation that she’d never make it in the Hindi film industry. (SUPPLIED)
Success came in 1999, when she starred opposite Salman Khan in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's “Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam”, which was centred on Rai's character, Nandini. It earned her first Filmfare Award for best actress. (SUPPLIED)
She also found fame internationally in 1999, with Subhash Ghai's “Taal”, which became the first Indian film in the United States to reach the top 20 on Variety's box-office list. (SUPPLIED)
Here success was cemented in 2000, when she starred in “Josh”, alongside Shahrukh Khan; “Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai”, opposite Anil Kapoor; “Mohabbatein”, alongside Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan; and the Tamil film “Kandukondain Kandukondain”. (SUPPLIED)
There were several commercial failures in India, too: “Dil Ka Rishta” with Arjun Rampal (2002); Rohan Sippy's “Kuch Na Kaho” (2002), alongside Abhishek Bachchan; and “Shabd” (2005). (SUPPLIED)
Meanwhile, her personal life was in tumult. In 1999, she began dating Bollywood actor Salman Khan; their relationship was often reported in the media until the couple separated in 2001. Rai cited "abuse (verbal, physical and emotional), infidelity and indignity" on Khan’s part as a reason for ending their relationship. In 2009, Khan denied ever beating her.
By the following year, she was involved with actor Vivek Oberoi – but Salman Khan wouldn’t let go. In 2003, Oberoi called a press conference at his house, where he alleged that Khan had been threatening him because of his close relations with Rai. Khan denied the allegations. (SUPPLIED)
Often considered the only Bollywood actress with the potential to make it internationally, Rai has done a slew of foreign projects to often disastrous results: Gurinder Chadha's “Bride and Prejudice” (2004); “The Mistress of Spices” (2005); “The Last Legion” (2007), alongside Ben Kingsley and Colin Firth; Jag Mundhra's “Provoked” (2007) and “The Pink Panther 2” (2009). (SUPPLIED)
But she’s had more successes than failures, including “Dhoom 2” (2006), which at Rs770m became the highest grossing film of the year; Mani Ratnam’s “Guru” (2007); and in 2008, the epic “Jodhaa Akbar” which grossed Rs590m domestically. (SUPPLIED)
In 2002, Bhansali cast her in his “Devdas”, an adaptation of Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay's famous novel. The film received a special screening at the Cannes Film Festival and became the highest-grossing film of the year in both India and overseas, winning numerous awards. (SUPPLIED)
Some have slammed her for her advertising work, with wags saying her commercials do better than her movies. Notable endorsements include Longines, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, L’Oreal and charity work with India’s Eye Bank Association.
But whether or not she can act is a key question. She has been equally praised and slated for her acting, with more arty films such as 2003’s “Chokher Bali” and 2006’s “Umrao Jaan” earning her critical applause, while her wooden acting has been panned even in commercial winners such as “Dhoom 2”. (SUPPLIED)
In 2007, after much speculation concerning their relationship, her engagement to actor Abhishek Bachchan was announced. They married in April that year in what became a national media extravaganza. (SUPPLIED)
Other work: in 2003, Rai became the first Indian actress to be a jury member at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2009 India gave her a state honour, the Padma Shri for her contribution to Indian cinema. The same year, she refused to accept the second-highest Order Of France, Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, because her father’s illness prevented the family from travelling.
In 2010, Rai’s career typically witnessed the same highs and lows: while the Tamil “Raavanan” was a hit, it’s Hindi version, “Raavan”, fared much worse. And in October, she appeared with Rajinikanth in the Tamil film “Endhiran”, which has become the biggest blockbuster in India ever – largely due to the presence of superstar Rajnikanth.
Upcoming films include Sanjay Leela Bhansali's “Guzaarish” opposite Hrithik Roshan, Vipul Shah's “Action Replayy” opposite Akshay Kumar, and new projects with Farhan Akhtar and Vishal Bharadwaj.