Aishwarya Rai Bachchan on Jazbaa: ‘No one should be questioned about comebacks and going away’

For the Bollywood star, it's not about how often you make a film – but how good your work is.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in a scene from the song Kahaaniyaan, which features in her new film Jazbaa. Courtesy Essel Vision

Ever since director Sanjay Gupta confirmed last year that his new film Jazbaa would star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, fans and critics have been on the edges of their seats. After months of teasers, trailers, promos and posters for the film, the long wait is finally over.

Starring 41-year-old ex-Miss World and crossover Indian actor Irrfan Khan, the crime thriller releases in cinemas on Thursday, October 8, while the Arabic-dubbed version will be released on October 15.

In the film, a remake of the 2007 South Korean drama Seven Days, Aishwarya portrays a prominent lawyer, Anuradha Verma, while Khan is a police inspector, Yohan.

During a video conference call from Mumbai, the first question thrown at the actress inevitably was about her “comeback” – Jazbaa is her first film in five years.

But it’s a word that the actress has often said she dislikes.

"I don't think I had gone anywhere," she says. "I have been in the public eye. If not through films, then through public appearances and brand endorsements. I have been going to studios, interacting with directors, and working with technicians. I don't feel I ever went anywhere. When a film was ready to take off, Jazbaa was it. Yes, it was my first one after a break, but it was not planned to be that way. It just turned out to be. Actors – and all other artists, for that matter – should be allowed the liberty to work at their own pace. Be it five shifts a day, or one film in two years. No one should be questioned about comebacks and going away. Having said that, I do know and accept that Jazbaa will always be identified as my comeback film."

In the film, she plays a mother who faces a moral and professional dilemma after her daughter is abducted.

“When Sanjay first narrated the story to me, it struck me as something I would have loved to have done even five years ago,” she says. “Had I [been given the chance to play] Anuradha Verma back then, I would have interpreted the character based on the narration of my director. Having done it, I realised that I could bring a lot of honesty to the character, because now I know about a being a mother. I definitely did have a personal advantage because as an actor I am now equipped to know what a mother – and a working mother, more so – in this situation would feel like. Having said that, I would not wish this situation on anyone.”

The actress also spoke about the first time the script was read to her, and said she immediately pictured Irrfan Khan and Shabana Azmi, her co-stars in two of the parts.

“It was the most wonderful feeling when he said that they have already been signed up to play those parts – that’s when I really felt at home with the project,” she said.

“It’s the kind of cinema we ourselves would love to view. It’s a thriller based on a strong subject, and made in good taste. It has given us the opportunity to enjoy performing our parts. We have yet to see the final product ourselves, but we believe it is a must-watch.”