Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, 42, has been invited to join the French President Francois Hollande at a function on Jan. 26 in Delhi. The star, who made a comeback to the industry in 2015 with "Jazbaa," will take a break from her current filming schedule to head to the capital for Republic Day celebrations, where Hollande is the Chief Guest.
A source close to the actress told the Times of India that the invitation was extended by the Ambassador of France to India, François Richier. Further it was revealed that the "Guru" actress is the only one from the Bollywood industry to be invited to the event, which is said to be a small intimate function with a handful of guests in attendance.
The "Devdas" actress who is a familiar face at Cannes, according to the publication, will be representing the Indian cinema industry at the event.
Meanwhile, the actress currently filming "Sarbjit," a biopic based on Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh, and performed a crucial scene of the movie without cuts, according to Cinemarkets. The film is directed by national award winning director Omung Kumar and stars Randeep Hooda as the lead actor, together with Richa Chaddha playing a supporting role.
The film is narrated through the perspective of Rai Bachchan's character. The actress who plays the role of Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur delivered a scene with heart warming dialogue in one take, leaving those on set at the time with tears and goosebumps at her performance, a source told the publication.
Furhermore, Bachchan's performance earned a standing ovation and a round of applause from the cast and crew on set, the source said.
"With 25 years of experience, Aishwarya stands tall as one of the most efficient and professional artists. And since she pulled off a 2 minute performance oriented scene so gracefully in one take, with no cuts and retakes, it was more like a real moment than a scene being filmed," producer of "Sarbjit" Sandeep Singh said in a statement obtained by the publication.
The film, which commenced shooting in December 2015, is scheduled to be released in Indian theaters on May 19, and is also set to be screened at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival.
The trailer to "Jazbaa" the actresses last film can be viewed below :