A Dream That Followed Its Own Path

Sometimes we chase our dreams to give it a certain shape and don’t stop ourselves until it is being achieved. But it has been seen sometimes that a total opposite incident is taking place. In spite of our planning to chase different career option we get chosen by a certain path about which we have never dreamt of. On 1^st November 1976 a self-made diva born in Mangaluru, Karnataka.

She wanted to establish herself in the career of medicine or architecture but ended up being an actress of international acclamation. Being a daughter of an army biologist she always found zoology being her favorite subject. In order to pursue her career in architecture in she enrolled in Rachna Sansad Academy of Architecture, but finally, she quit her college to pursue a career in modeling.

This decision started to show her actual destination when she won an international supermodel contest (organized by Ford) in 1991. This not only makes her belief once again on her career choice but also fastened her success graph to reach a higher position. This acclamation eased her path to get featured in the American edition of Vogue. After that, she worked in many add commercials in India. 1994 again showed her a huge success in her career when she became 1^st runner-up behind Sushmita Sen in Miss India pageant that year. After knowing this, are you feel it necessary for me to mention her name. Yes, you are right. I am talking about none other than Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, a Bollywood diva.

Apart from this crown she also won five other sub-title like “Miss Catwalk”, “Miss Miraculous” “Miss Photogenic” “Miss Perfect Ten”. In that year she also won the crown of Miss World along with three other sub-titles in Miss World pageant 1994 held in South Africa. Along with modeling and acting, she nurtured another dream about which she spoke after winning the title. Peace of the world was that another dream which she mentioned during that time. In later years we have found how sincerely she had worked on her this dream whenever it becomes possible.

After winning this beauty pageant she made her acting debut in a Tamil movie Iruvar, directed by Mani Ratnam in 1997. After that numerous Bollywood movies and regional movies (Tamil, Bengali) have got appreciated for her acting skills. Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Devdas, Raincoat, Guzaarish, Jodha Akbar, Ae Dil Hai Muskil, Raavan, Sarbjit are few of such Bollywood movies. Nobody can forget the way she portrayed the character of Binodini in the Bengali movie Chokher Bali. While Kandukondain was her another masterpiece in Tamil cinema she left us mesmerized by her acting as Kiranjit Ahluwalia in Provoked (2006), a British drama. On the other hand, her Lalita Bakshi in Bride and Prejudice (2004) compels us to rethink on few facts known to us for years.

Also Read: A dream is a wish your heart makes

Such a magnificent career in both Bollywood and international films not only her a star of Indian film but also helped India to add a mark in the international film fraternity. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is the first Indian to be a jury member in Cannes Film Festivals. The first Indian to appear in Oprah Winfrey show. She got nominated for the Filmfare Award ten times and won two of them in the category of Best Actress for her roles in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999) and Devdas (2002). In 2009, Government of India awarded her Padma Shri for her contributions in arts. Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in India. Not only Indians but also few international acclamations have been given to her in the honor of her contribution into movies. In 2012, Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Chevallier) (a national order of France) was given to her. Her wax statue is also in display since 2004 in Madame Tussaud’s wax museum, London. In 2007 a survey conducted by India Today has found that near about 17000 websites have been contributed in the name of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

Also Read: Living the Bollywood Dream – Story of a Common Boy

Apart from being a successful actress, she is a Goodwill Ambassador for the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS). In 2004 she founded a support foundation to help needy people and pledged to donate her eyes to Eye Bank Association of India. This campaign was all about increasing eye donation awareness among Indian. Her engagement with such social works is not limited in this few charitable works and it became more widespread when she got appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for Smile Train. This charitable work not only helped Indians but also another 76 developing countries to provide cleft lip and palate surgery to the children who need it the most. She took part in HELP! Telethon Concert which was nothing but a fundraising event for the 2004 tsunami earthquake survivors.

From the dream journey of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, it is clear that life is not always something that you speculate for long. Sometimes, your passion to pursue your small interests can also open up a dream journey in front of you. All we need is to remain focused on our works that we are pursuing right now and feeling the utmost urge to go more miles in that way. We just have to through ourselves towards whatever life is offering to us in our journey. Otherwise, who thought that a girl preparing to be a successful architect will end up being a role model for thousands of dreamers who are chasing their Bollywood dreams?