5 iconic Aishwarya Rai films to celebrate her birthday

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has long dominated the hearts of the audience. The pageant queen turned actress, made her film debut in 1997's Tamil film "Iruvar", directed by Mani Ratnam. Having established an illustrious body of work, Aishwarya has proved herself as a versatile actress, breathing life into any character she took on.

Today marks her 49th birthday, and as she steps into this new year of her life, we have curated a list of five quintessential Aishwarya Rai films everyone should watch.

Devdas (2002)
Aishwarya's performance as the enigmatic character of Paru, played by Aishwarya Rai, in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Devdas", still feels like an arrow through the hearts of the audience. Adding to that, her looks as a classic Bengali woman in the film is also stunning.

Playing the wife of the Zamindar and the ex-lover of the titular Devdas, the actress mesmerised everyone by playing a character with such depth and intricacy.

Mohabbatein (2000)
"Mohabbatein", directed by Aditya Chopra, is amongst Aishwarya's most memorable films. In the movie, Aishwarya stars opposite Shah Rukh Khan, playing his deceased love interest. Her character commits suicide after her family rejects her love for Raj (Shah Rukh Khan), because he is a student of her father's school.

Most of Aishwarya's scenes in the movie are either flashbacks or her playing a ghost, that can only be seen by Shah Rukh. The actress' range is truly incredible, as she plays a character who isn't even alive in the film's timeline, still managing to pull off an extraordinary performance.

Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999)
Yet another Sanjay Leela Bhansali film, "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam" is the probably the film that skyrocketed Aishwarya's stock in the industry. Starring opposite, Ajay Devgn and Salman Khan, Aishwarya is once again caught in another love triangle, and does an excellent job of captivating audiences with her performance.

The tragic love story portrayed the reality of women in a society governed by men—highlighting the conflict between choosing your family and your lover. On top of that, the actress also showed her acting prowess by displaying how her character goes through the realisation of her role as a wife versus that of an independent individual, eventually coming to grips with the reality she chooses for herself.

Guzaarish (2010)
Sofia D'Souza, in "Guzaarish" directed by (you guessed it) Sanjay Leela Bhansali, is by far the boldest character Aishwarya has played. In the film, she does a brilliant job of showcasing the 'compassion' and 'fighting spirit' of women.

Sofia is a woman in a marriage that is no longer working, and a nurse for a famed magician Ethan Mascarenhas (Hrithik Roshan), who is paralysed. Ethan finds himself in debt and is depressed to the point that he considers taking his own life, and Sofia is the strong woman keeping his trauma at bay. Throughout the film, it is clear that Sofia is not playing second fiddle to Ethan's story, rather she has her own unique narrative running parallel to that of the magicians.

Jodhaa Akbar (2008)
In this film, Aishwarya plays the Hindu Rajput princess, Jodhaa Bai who is married to the Muslim Mughal emperor, Jalaluddin Akbar (Hrithik Roshan). The historical film was directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar, and had earned Aishwarya much acclaim for her performance.

Aishwarya's acting in the film broke the sociocultural norms in India, as the country witnessed a Muslim Emperor married to a Hindu Princess, helping convey a massage of peace and harmony.