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Ash the kid: As a child, it is said that Aishwarya Rai was a good student, and had successfully entered an architecture degree, which she left midway, when the 1994 Miss India contest happened.

The year that was: As many Indians know, 1994 was a significant year in Ash's life. She entered the Miss India contest, and came in second, defeated by Sushmita Sen. As a result, Ash could only make it to the Miss World contest, which she won, while Sush went on to win the Miss Universe crown.

Enter celluloid: Ash waited till 1997 to start acting; her first was a Tamil film called Iruvar, which was directed by Mani Ratnam. In the same year, she also marked her Bollywood debut with Aur Pyaar Ho g*ya opposite Bobby Deol, but the film flopped.

Enter success: Success in the film world came the following year with her next Tamil flick, Jeans, directed by S. Shankar. Ash won the Filmfare Best Actress Award South for her role in this film.

Achievements aplenty: In 1999, Ash took over Bollywood with two major films - Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Taal, winning the Filmfare Best Actress Award for the former. The film also ushered in her relationship with Bollywood's most eligible bachelor, Salman Khan. The two dated for about two years, and broke up in March 2002. Later that year, the storm that hit Bollywood was Ash's contention that Salman was harassing her and even that he used to beat her during their dating days.

Dream team: In 2002, Ash teamed up with Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit for Bollywood's third Devdas. She played the sensual Parvati, while Madhuri played Chandramukhi. The 'Dola re' dance sequence created waves across the country, as two of the best dancers in the industry were being choreographed by the legendary Saroj Khan.

Dream shattered: Soon after the release of Devdas, Ash was signed by SRK's production house Dreamz Unlimited for Chalte Chalte. Though she had started shooting, she was dropped from the project - according to her, rather unceremoniously. Some say it was because of Salman's frequent (drunk) attempts to disrupt the shooting to woo Ash back (this was after their breakup) which cost the production house dear, and some say it was because of SRK's loyalty to Salman. Either way, it lead to a massi*ve fallout between SRK and Ash - a breach that hasn't still been mended.

Ash overseas: In the midst of her freeze out from Bollywood, international projects came Ash's way, getting her recognition across the world. The Mistress of Spices (2005) directed by Paul Mayeda Berges had Ash starring opposite Dylan McDermott. One of the writers of this film was Gurinder Chadda, with whom Ash had worked in 2004.

The second Miss Bennet: Ash was signed up by Indian born director Gurinder Chadda for her adaptation of Jane Austen's classic novel, Pride and Prejudice. Ash played the fiery Lalita (the Indianised Lizzy) opposite Martin Henderson who played William Darcy in Bride and Prejudice.

Art calls Ash: Apart from commercial films, Ash has also acted in what is referred to as parallel cinema. Rituparno Ghosh picked her to play the young widow Binodini in Chokher Bali. Till date, it is considered one of Ghosh's and Ash's best films. The duo then went on to work in Raincoat, an adaptation of O'Henry's story 'Gift of the Magi'

Back in Bollywood: As her international acclaim grew, fans in India got worried that they had lost Ash to the world. It was in an attempt to reassure them that she appeared in the famous item song 'Kajra re' in the film Bunty Aur Babli where she danced with future hubby Abhishek and his father, Amitabh Bachchan.

Hit and miss: By 2006, rumors of Abhi-Ash as a couple had started doing the rounds; they appeared together in Umrao Jaan, which was a flop in spite of the golden couple and in Dhoom 2, where they weren't paired with each other. Ash who played Sunehri in Dhoom 2 had electrifying chemistry with Hrithik Roshan, which was heightened by the kiss which raised some eyebrows with her in-laws to be.

All in the family: Though Abhi-Ash didn't really have a hit together, Ash's first director, Mani Ratnam, signed them together for his comeback to Bollywood film, Guru. The two also appeared together (and with dad Big B) in Ram Gopal Verma's Sarkar Raj and are getting ready for Mani Ratnam's next, Raavana, the shooting for which was delayed because of Big B's illness, but is now back on track.

The big moment: Abhishek and Aishwarya denied their relationship for the longest time, leading to many speculations, even of a secret wedding. The two however finally tied the knot in February 2002. The wedding invitations lead to much controversy as who was invited and who left out became a matter of national concern.

More of Darcy: Ash's first actual Hollywood film was The Last Legion, where she starred opposite Colin Firth (who played Darcy in the most acclaimed version of Pride and Prejudice) and Sir Ben Kingsley. The film however was a disappointment at the box office.

Battered on screen: One of Ash's critically acclaimed films was Provoked where she played the battered wife Kiranjit Ahluwalia opposite Naveen Andrews who had also acted in Bride and Prejudice. While the film was invited to the Cannes Film Festival, people who knew the real Kiranjit criticized the film severely for its inaccuracies and unidimensional approach.

The queen: Ash once again teamed up with Hrithik Roshan for Ashutosh Gowarikar's Jodhaa Akbar. This film too got into a lot of problems with historians and religious groups. The film, despite its length and these problems did well.

Age cannot wither, nor customs stale: Ash, who is 35, is still on the top of most polls listing the most beautiful or the s.e.xiest women in the world, steadily leaving behind veterans of such lists like Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johansson etc. It makes it easy to forget that there was a time India thought there was a woman more beautiful within the country itself.