The former Miss World, 41, who is making a comeback to the big screen after five years with Jazbaa, said there was a perception in people’s mind that she will opt for glamorous role but she preferred otherwise. “When I chose to start my career with Iruvar, I genuinely believed I was liberating myself as an actor. I came to the industry after Miss World, modelling… There was obvious perception that ‘Aishwarya Rai means glamour’.
“So when I chose to work with Mani Ratnam in a south Indian film like Iruvar, which had Mohanlal, Revathi, Tabu, I wanted to be free as an artist. I didn’t want to be in the mould of perception… I wanted to be free from this perception,” she told reporters during the promotion of the film in the capital. In the Sanjay Gupta-directed film, which releases this Friday, Aishwarya plays a doting mother of a girl child.
The mother of one took insights from her real life to portray the character of Anuradha Verma. “There was no apprehension of playing a mother. I would have chosen this film five years ago too but the difference is today I am a mother. So, I am playing Anuradha Verma in a given situation, I do know what a mother is experiencing. I have brought the truth towards acting through this film.”
Asked whether it was a challenge to strike a balance between motherhood and professional commitments, the Guzaarish actress said, “Every working woman, every mother has her own challenge to multitask. It brings a certain joy which is difficult to put to words but if you think I am looking content, it means I have found my balance.”
However, the actress does not like to label the film as her comeback project. “Honestly, I don’t feel like I was gone anywhere. I became a mother and during that time, through advertisements, endorsements and social work, I was always in touch with fans. “Though I wasn’t working in cinema but I really didn’t feel that I was away. So, I didn’t realise the time that has gone by.
