Royal roles for Aishwarya Rai 21st Jan 2008
22.50 IST
By Aparajita Ghosh
There is indeed something regal about the beauty of Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai .
She may have played a courtesan with impeccable mannerisms in Umrao Jaan and a warrior princess in The Last Legion , but when it comes to royal roles, no other actress in Bollywood can match Aishwarya Rai.
Ash was Ashutosh Gowarikar’s “first and only choice” to play the Rajput princess Jodhabai who goes on to become the beloved consort of Mughal emperor Akbar in the upcoming film Jodhaa Akbar .
Last year, when British actor Sir Ben Kingsley announced his ambitious film on Taj Mahal, he had unequivocally stated that he could not think of any actress other than Aishwarya to play queen Mumtaz Mahal.
And now, Hollywood director Michael Radford wants Aishwarya for his film on Taj. He doesn’t want Ash to play Mumtaz, but Salim’s wife Mandi.
If Ash agrees to act in this film, she would get the distinct honour of playing the wives of three generation of Mughals – Akbar, Salim and Shah Jahan – in different projects, of course.
While ‘Jodhaa Akbar’ is set to release on February 15, Ben Kingsley’s film will go on the floors later this year.
Royal roles for Aishwarya Rai
