She’s one of the biggest actresses in the country and is often referred to as ‘the most beautiful woman in the world,’ so it’s pretty easy to forget that Aishwarya Rai came from humble beginnings before her meteoric rise to the top.  The gorgeous gal was born in Mangalore before her family moved to Mumbai.  And she’s not just a pretty face, Aishwarya was actually a pretty good student and she had planned on a career as an architect!  Thank goodness things didn’t turn out as she planned! 

While in college, the Southern beauty began modeling on the side.  In 1994 she was runner-up at the Miss India pageant, to Sushmita Sen and went on to win the Miss World title that made her famous in the same year.  Here’s a little known fact.  She also won the ‘Miss Photogenic’ title at the pageant – and we can see why!  Aishwarya went on to London where she upheld her title for a year and became a professional model before becoming the actress that we all know today. 

Aishwarya made her film debut in a Tamil movie ‘Iruvar’ in 1997 and then her Bollywood debut in ‘Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya’ in the same year opposite Bobby Deol.  Aishwarya has certainly come a long way from those days, with films like, ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam,’ ‘Devdaas,’ and ‘Dhoom 2.’  Not to mention her high profile relationships with Salman Khan and Vivek Oberoi, finally leading to her marriage to Abhishek Bachchan. 

Throughout the years she has modeled for a number of high profile campaigns such as, Swiss luxury watch brand Longiness, Nakshatra diamonds, and probably most notably international cosmetics brand L’Oreal!  With L’Oreal, Aishwarya’s ads appear alongside Hollywood stars such as, Eva Longoria, Eva Medes, and Heather Locklear. 

No matter what your opinion may be, there’s no denying Aishwarya has achieved a highly successful career since her modeling days, and it’s still continuing!