On April 20, 2007, Bollywood's power couple Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan exchanged their wedding vows, leaving the entire nation in awe of them.
After a touching proposal, the grand wedding was hailed as the decade's best 'star wedding.' In times when there were no social media hashtags and minute-to-minute social media coverage, people around the country remained glued to their television screens just to get a glimpse of the bride and groom.
From their proposal to welcoming their first child, here's a timeline of the adorable couple's relationship.
The first meeting
As revealed by Abhishek, the first time the couple saw each other was in 1999, during a photoshoot for their film 'Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke'.
Since then, Abhishek and Aishwarya have worked together on several movies like 'Kuch Naa Kaho' (2003), 'Bunty Aur Babli' (2005), 'Dhoom 2' (2006), 'Umrao Jaan' (2006), and 'Guru' (2007).
When love brew
The gradual transition from being friends to partners reportedly took place in 2006-2007, where in a period of one year, three of their films were released. It was during this phase, that they got an opportunity to know each other inside-out.
At that point, no one knew that the on-screen chemistry between the two lead actors in 'Dhoom 2', 'Umrao Jaan' and 'Guru', was soon going to change into a real-life relationship.
The first Bachchan ensemble
The first time we got to see Abhishek, Amitabh and the would-be Mrs Bachchan together on screen was during 'Bunty Aur Babli' (2005).
The iconic song 'Kajra Re' where the father-son duo rocks the stage with the ever-beautiful Aishwarya is one of the most memorable moments in the 'Abhi-Aish' timeline.
The Proposal
When Abhishek and Aishwarya travelled to Toronto for the premiere of their film 'Guru' in 2007, Abhishek had planned an adorable proposal for Aishwarya.
Sharing the details to Oprah Winfrey in the couple's first interview post their wedding, he said, "I was filming in New York for a movie. And, I used to stand on the balcony of my hotel room and wish that, 'One day, wouldn't it be nice if I was together with her, married.' Years later, we were there for the premiere of Guru. After the premiere, we were back in the hotel. So, I took her to the very same balcony, and I asked her to marry me."
Aishwarya immediately accepted the proposal.
Engagement and Wedding
After the proposal, the couple had secretly gotten engaged on January 14, 2007, at the Bachchan's residence. After their engagement, Aishwarya quite frequently used to meet the Bachchans.
In the span of a few months, the couple went ahead with their highly-anticipated wedding on April 20, 2007. Aishwarya looked heavenly in the beautiful golden Kanjeevaram saree and traditional jewellery, with the ensemble made by fashion designer Neeta Lulla.
'Abhi-Aish' at Cannes
In May 2007, the couple walked their first ever Cannes red carpet together. The charming duo appeared hand-in-hand at the event, setting major couple goals and winning many hearts.
Milan Fashion Week
In 2010, the couple were sitting in the first row with international stars at the Giorgio Armani fashion show at the Milan Fashion Week.
While Aishwarya wore wide-legged velvet Armani trousers paired with a smart black satin jacket and a simple clutch, Abhishek chose a black suit with a white shirt.
The Oscars
Vacationing in Los Angeles, the couple got an invitation to the Academy Awards aka Oscars.
"What a great interruption to have, I think. It's been wonderful, it's a bit cold in LA which is unusual but it's wonderful, it's so nice, very sweet of them to invite us and recognise our film industry and we're very happy to be here representing India," Abhishek said at the event.
Welcoming their first child
After four years of being married, Abhishek and Aishwarya welcomed their daughter, Aaradhya, into the world on November 16, 2011.
Both Aishwarya and Abhishek have been vocal about how grateful they are for Aaradhya coming into their life. When Aishwarya made her debut on Instagram, she had posted a monochrome picture with Aaradhya when she was born and had captioned it as 'I was born again.'
Graceful public appearances
After the birth of their daughter Aaradhya, Abhishek and Aishwarya were spotted together on several occasions.
In 2012, on Amitabh Bachchan's 70th birthday, Aradhya made her first public appearance along with her mother Aishwarya.
In 2014, Abhishek and Aishwarya were seen at the Pro Kabaddi League supporting their team Jaipur Pink Panthers.
In 2016, Aaradhya and her parents were seen together at a Durga Puja event, and in 2017, they were spotted entering the Siddhivinayak temple.
Also in 2017, they were seen at the Ambani's Ganpati party.
It's been 15 years since Abhishek and Aishwarya tied the knot and the couple never fails to embrace their love for each other.
In a recent interview with ANI, Abhishek shared how Aishwarya taught him to focus on positivity in life, especially while dealing with negative criticism.
"My wife once told me that, 'you get 10,000 positive comments but you get affected by one negative comment. You should concentrate on positivity and experience the beauty of the positive world'. So, I always try to look at things with positivity," he had said.
Talking about their work front, Aishwarya will be making her comeback with 'Raavan' director Mani Ratnam for the Tamil film 'Ponniyin Selvan', a historical drama that also stars Jayam Ravi, Chiyaan Vikram, and Keerthy Suresh.
On the other hand, Abhishek recently starred in 'Dasvi' which gained some appreciation from fans. He will be next seen in a new season of Amazon Prime's 'Breathe'.
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