Athiya: I was Aishwarya's poonch!

Ever since her childhood, Athiya Shetty was drawn to the world of movies and she always nurtured the dream to play a quintessential Bollywood heroine.

The gorgeous and talented actress who grew up watching her father Suniel Shetty as an actor was deeply influenced by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Athiya is a great admirer of Aishwarya's beauty and acting talent.

ATHIYA SHETTY

The talented actress who will be next seen in the forthcoming family entertainer, MUBARAKAN saw the former beauty queen on the sets of J P Dutta's UMRAO JAAN. "I was Aishwarya's poonch! I followed her on the set. I would just watch her getting ready for the shoot. And that's when I decided I wanted to be a part of this beautiful world of Hindi movies.

"That's the first time I ever went to a set. Papa was shooting BORDER. I know this today but back then, I had no clue what was going on. I just have a picture of my father and me riding a horse. Probably, I was meant to be on a set. And here I am, Athiya recalls.

MUBARAKAN releases on 28 July!