Countdown to Aishwarya - Abhishek wedding

BY A CORRESPONDENT
January 26, 2007

It's official, Ladies and Gentlemen - Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan have got engaged. After month after agonising month when fans debated whether Ash and Abhishek are really in love, clarity has finally emerged. Thank you, Bachchans. The wedding date, time and place have not been announced yet, but believe us - it's going to be one star-spangled gala wedding fest.

Meanwhile, reports say that the wild Aishwarya-Hritkik Roshan kiss in Dhoom-II was chopped off the movie after the Bachchans' intervention. The bold kiss by Aishwarya and Hritik Roshan had raised eyebrows. There was even a legal case filed against the moviemakers. However, once the actors and their families decided on the Ash-Abhishek wedding, the Bachchans moved Yashraj Films and pulled the plug on the kissing scene. Reports say the actors' families were upset at Dhoom-II release with the bold kissing scene on the eve of the Aishwarya-Abhishek wedding engagement. Anyway, to cut a long story short, the movie which plays in theatres no longer features the Ash-Hritik kissing scene.

Scroll down for an update on the Ash-Abhishek marriage mania.

Wedding proposal after Guru premiere:

Recently, the Abhishek Bachchan movie Guru was released in Toronto, Canada on January 12. This was the forst Bollywood film to be premiered outside India. After the event, Abhishek proposed to Aishwarya, media reports said. Elgin & Winter Garden Theater Center in downtown Toronto. Mani Ratnam who directed Guru and AR Rahman who composed its music were also in Canada for the premiere of Guru.

Wedding likely in Jaipur:

The Ash-Abhishek wedding party is likely to held at Jaipur. There may be over 6000 guests attending the marriage reception. According to IANS reports, the families of Aishwarya and Abhishek have started talks with the royal families of Jaipur in this regard. Stars from Bollywood, industrialists and politicians are expected to be in attendance at the grand gala wedding. The Bachchans rub shoulders with the creme de la creme of the Indian society. They are believed to be close to the Jaipur royalty. The Bachchans may book the entire palace for the wedding. The only constraint would be security for the high-profile guests. Some rumors also say that it will be Udaipur, not Jaipur, which will host the wedding. Bachchan family representatives are believed to have started talks with some of the five-star hotels in this area to accommodate guests. It is going to be a huge logistics operations.

Pooja for Aishwarya:

Aishwarya Rai's parents Brinda Rai and Krishnaraj Rai have performed a special puja for daughter Ash at Nagabana in Sonthady near Kasargod. All family members except Aishwarya, who is busy in a shooting schedule, took part in the annual puja. Later, the Rai parents and family also visted Dharmasthala. Aishwarya Rai's mother was quoted as saying that the wedding will be according to North Indian customs.

Wedding date and time:

The planning process is not final, says Amitabh Bachchan. Pundits are reported to have told the Bachchans that the Ash Abhishek wedding should be completed before March-end. Aishwarya's Manglik status is believed to have held up the wedding for a long time. Aishwarya and Abhishek have been visiting temple after temple to seek blessings for the marriage.

Ash Abhishek Wedding trousseau:

According to an unconfirmed report, the Bachchan family has ordered Banaras sarees to be woven at a textile store in Varanasi. This exquisite saree will have Kolkata-Jaipuri embroidery embellishments. The price of Aishwarya's wedding saree may be over Rs 2 lakhs. Bachchans have also ordered 21 sarees for family members, the report added.

Vrinda Rai's clothes order:

According to CBNBC-TV 18, Aishwarya's mother Vrinda Rai has called a designer from Kolkata to design pre-wedding clothes for Ash and Abhishek, with a one-week deadline. According to Sharbari Datta, a Kolkata based designer, she has been beena sked by Aishwarya's mother two design four kurtas and a dhoti for Abhishek Bachchan, her son-in-law-to-be.

According to the report, the Abhishek's wedding Kurta will be priced between Rs 6000 and Rs 10,000. Nothing expensive, given the star value of high-wattage Abhishek-Aishwarya wedding. Pre-wedding clothes for Aishwarya Rai have also been ordered - 21 of them in all. The report said that the designer has deliver the pre-wedding costume by January 22.

Benares singer at Ash-Abhishek wedding:

A singer from Varanasi is exected to perform at the Aishwarya Rai-Abhishek Bachchan wedding.The Varanasi singer Channulal Mishra was quoted as telling the news agencies that he has been invitee by Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek's father, to perform. He said that he is on a practice session these days. Though he too does not know when Ash and Abhishek will get married, he believes the marriage will be in March.

Rai family at Dharmasthala:

Aishwarya Rai's father Krishnaraj Rai said that the Ash-Abhishek wedding date, place and time will be announced soon. "We will soon be announcing the date of Abhishek and Aishwarya's wedding. Krishnaraj Rai was speaking to media after visiting Dharmasthala on Friday January 19. He added that it was a great honour that his daughter would soon be the daughter-in-law of the Bachchan family. He said that the Rai family's visit to Dharmasthala was planned much before the wedding engagement was fixed.

European honeymoon for Aishwarya-Abhishek?:

Several foreign tourism agencies are reported to have invited Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan to spend their honeymoon at exotic foreign locales. Rail Europe, Swiss Tourism and French Tourism have extended their courtesy to Aishwarya and Abhishek for a free honeymoon with them. For the tourism agencies, having Aishwarya and Abhishek on board is equal to having a brnad endorsement for their country or locality. They have been offered the chance to tour Europe, stay in igloo hotels and dine at the Seine, Eiffel Tower.

Ash, WEF Global Young Leader:

A day after her engagement with Abhishek Bachchan was announced by Amitabh Bachchan to the world, Aishwarya Rai was named as one World Economic Forum's Global Young Leaders. Other members from India who figure in the WEF Global Young Leader list include Karan Johar, Omar Abdullah, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Naveen Jindal, Vikram Chandra, Raju Narisetti and Prince Shivraj Singh of Jodhpur. The WEF Young Global Leaders 2007 names business leaders and leaders from governments, academia, media and society from nearly 70 countries.

Légion d'honneur for Amitabh:

Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan are expected to attend a function in Delhi, when Amitabh Bachchan will be awarded the Légion d'honneur by the French government at its Indian embassy. Jaya and Sweta Bachchan will also be in attendance. More than 400 guests are invited. A French media delegation is also flying in to report the event. Légion d'honneur is the highest civilian honour in France.

Aishwarya Rai sculptures:

A news agency report said that a sculptor from Jaipur is crafting 25 sculptures of Aishwarya Rai in different moods. The sculptor hopes to complete the work by June, and is working 10 hours a day with his three sons. Then, he plans to hold an exhibition in Mumbai and gift a sculpture to Aishwarya. The sculptor Arjun Prajapathi says that he got the inspiration to start work on the Aishwarya project in a dream.

Meera miffed at wedding:

Pakistani actress Meera said that Abhishek Bachchan has committed a huge mistake with his decision to marry Aishwarya Rai."Let me predict today that Aishwarya would be such a mark of disgrace to the Bachchan family that could never be washed away even with the holy waters of the Ganges," she was quoted as saying in Gulf News. She expressed her affection for Abhishek Bachchan and said that he was a simple guy. Meera said that Aishwarya Rai acted "unduly vulgar" in her recent movie Dhoom-II. Meera added that the Bachchan family committed a major mistake in selecting Ash for their bahu, which they will regret for a long time. "He has been trapped and has taken the wrong decision for the rest of his life," Meera said of Abhishek Bachchan.

Awards won by Ash

1998, Star Screen Award Most Promising Newcomer - Female, Aur Pyar Ho Gaya
1998, Screen Discovery of the Year
1998, Filmfare Best Actress Award South, Jeans
2000, Star Screen Award Best Actress, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000, Filmfare Best Actress Award, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000, Stardust Millennium Best Actress Award, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000, Zee Lux Face of the Year
2000, Zee Cine Award Best Actor- Female, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000, IIFA Best Actress Award , Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000, Zee Gold Best Actress Award in Sensational Role, Taal
2000, Zee Gold Best Critics Actress Award, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
2000, Zee Gold Best Actress Award, Taal
2003, Zee Cine Award True Indian Beauty
2003, Zee Cine Award Best Actor- Female, Devdas
2003, Star Screen Award Jodi No. 1 shared with Shahrukh Khan for Devdas
2003, Star Screen Award Best Actress, Devdas
2003, Filmfare Best Actress Award, Devdas
2003, Sansui Best Actress Award, Devdas
2003, IIFA Best Actress Award, Devdas
2003, Bollywood Awards Best Actress, Devdas
2005, Zee Cine Critic's Best Actress Award, Raincoat
2005, IIFA's Global Indian Media Personality
2006, Indiatimes Number *5 In Sexiest Bollywood Stars Poll

International Awards won by Ash

1994, Miss Catwalk
1994, Miss Photogenic
1994, Miss Perfect Ten
1994, Miss Popular
1994, Femina Miss India World-1st Runner-up
1994, Most photogenic Face
1994, Miss World 1994
2000, Most Beautiful International Titleholder of All Times Gold Medal Winner
2000, Most Beautiful Miss World of All Times-Received the highest score of 9.911
2003, Cover of Time Magazine
2003, Official Cannes Jury Member
2004, Ran to Olympic Torch
2004, Hello Magazine's Yearly Most Beautiful Poll, Winner
2004, Wax London's prestigious Madame Tussauds Wax museum
2005, Appeared on CBS 60 mins, Oprah Winfrey, Good Morning America and The David Letterman Show

Abhishek: Awards won:

2004: Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for Yuva
2004: IIFA Best Supporting Actor Award for Yuva
2004: Star Screen Award Best Supporting Actor for Yuva
2004: Sports World Award, Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Yuva
2004: Zee Cine Award Best Actor in a Supporting Role- Male for Phir Milenge
2005: Stardust Star of the Year Award - Male for Yuva
2005: Zee Cine Award Best Actor in a Supporting Role- Male for Sarkar
2005: IIFA Best Supporting Actor Award for Sarkar
2005: Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for Sarkar
2005: Star Screen Award Best Comedian for Bunty Aur Babli
2005: Star Screen Award Jodi No. 1 along with Rani Mukherjee for Bunty Aur Babli
2006: CNN-IBN Entertainer of the Year-2005 for Bunty Aur Babli, Sarkar, Dus and Bluffmaster [12]
2006: Global Indian Film Awards, Best Supporting Actor for Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna [13]

Awards nominated for Abhishek

2000: Filmfare Best Debut Award for Refugee
2000: IIFA Awards, Best Upcoming Talent for Refugee
2000: Star Screen Award Most Promising Newcomer - Male for Refugee
2000: Zee Cine Award Best Male Debut- Male for Refugee
2003: Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon
2004: Filmfare Best Villain Award for Yuva
2004: Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role for Yuva
2005: Filmfare Best Actor Award for Bunty Aur Babli