Ash arrives at Jalsa

The actress arrived early for Abhishek Bachchan's birthday party and was the last to leave at 4 a.m.

If bystanders at Jalsa are to be believed, Aishwarya Rai is dating Abhishek Bachchan. Putting an end to all speculations about their relationship, Rai arrived at Jalsa, Amitabh Bachchan's bungalow at Juhu, to celebrate Abhishek Bachchan's birthday. She arrived at the party, to which the entire film industry had been invited, at 11 p.m., to leave only at four in the morning.

"Initially Ash refused to come out of her car, most likely she was daunted by all the photographers stationed outside Jalsa," says a freelance photographer present at the venue. "Finally Amar Singh came to her rescue, he shielded her and took her inside. She was wearing a green sari. As soon as she entered, the door was slammed shut. However, in the brief glimpse we got, we could see Abhishek greeting Ash with a hug."

A huge number of fans and well-wishers had gathered outside the bungalow to wish AB Jr. The entrance of the house was laden with bouquets of flowers. The crowds cheered and screamed for Abhishek every time the door opened for a celebrity. "Ash emerged from the party only at 4 a.m.," continues the photographer. "She was one of the last to leave. She was surprised to see some photographers still there, evidently she hadn't expected us to wait for her outside the bungalow through the night. Accompanied by her personal security guard, she looked embarrassed as she hurriedly entered her car and left the venue."

Incidentally, the chemistry that kicked off between Abhishek and Ash with 'Kajra Re', came to a full circle when Ash allegedly requested J P Dutta to extend the schedule of Umrao Jaan in Jaipur because she wanted to spend quality time with AB Jr. The film was supposed to be shot in two schedules initially, but Rai persuaded Dutta to extend the schedule and complete the film.

Ash had already committed dates to Aditya Chopra for Dhoom 2, but she called up her producer from Jaipur and requested him to postpone the shoot. Abhishek too managed to put in extra days for Umrao Jaan. There's another side to the story too.

Apparently Rai wanted Dutta to wrap up the entire film's shooting in one schedule for practical reasons too. It was difficult for her to wear those heavy, embroidered zardosi lehengas in winter itself, so she was apprehensive about wearing them during the March schedule, in the scorching heat. "She put her foot down and insisted that it wasn't humanly possible for an actor to emote under such adverse conditions," says a crew member. "This put the director in a fix. He wanted to shoot some of the scenes in March. But Ash insisted that J P Dutta should get dates from other actors and complete the shoot."