Aishwarya Rai ‘didn’t speak a word’ during Salman Khan fiasco, says Prahlad Kakkar: ‘Her silence was her dignity…’

Kakkar recalled how Aishwarya “didn’t speak a word” during her troubled phase with Salman. “Because that’s her dignity. She realised very early in life that her silence was her dignity and strength. And that bothered the media. So, they were constantly trying to demean, criticise, and bring her down so she comes down to a point where she says, ‘Enough! I’ll give you what you want!’ She never did,” he told ANI. He also referred to Salman as not just a “difficult” actor, but also a difficult man with a “lot of issues.”

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Kakkar compared Aishwarya’s approach to that of her Miss Universe rival Sushmita Sen. “Sushmita is an open book. She’s a moohfat (motormouth). She doesn’t care if it’s good or bad, she’d say, ‘Yes, he’s my boyfriend.’ If she’s asked how many lovers she has, she’ll tell you how many. She’s very bindaas (liberated) and darling of the press. Because they could get whatever she wanted from her because she didn’t hold back anything,” added Kakkar.

Kakkar claimed that not just the media, but even a lot of directors didn’t have easy access to Aishwarya, with the exception of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who worked with her in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999), Devdas (2002), and Guzaarish (2010). “They (Aishwarya and Sushmita) were such independent women! Our industry, like the rest of the country, doesn’t understand independent women. They’re so patriarchal,” Kakkar added.

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In an earlier interview with Vickey Lalwani, Prahlad had spoken about the turbulent Aishwarya-Salman relationship. He shared, “I was living in the same building! He would make scenes in the foyer. He would bang his head at the wall. The relationship had ended long before it ended. It was a relief for everybody; her parents, her, everybody. She wasn’t upset about the break-up. She was upset about being completely… Everybody took Salman’s side and not hers.”