Ash's quiet birthday with family, friends

After being honoured by the French government with the prestigious 'Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters', Aishwarya Rai Bachchan celebrated her 39th birthday with close family and friends at her residence.

Ash welcomes designer Abu Jani. The actress wore a pink Abu-Sandeep anarkali suit on her birthday.

Mrs Bachchan's brother Aditya Rai arrived at his sister's residence with wife Shrima and son Vihaan.

Actress Sonali Bendre with husband Goldie Behl were also part of the guest list.

Ash's sister-in-law Shrima Rai was crowned Mrs India in 2009.

Coming up: At 39, Ash is still the queen of hearts

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, often called the most beautiful woman in the world, continues to draw gasps of admiration as she turns 39. From being the face of international brands to changing diapers for her 11-month old daughter Aaradhya, life has changed drastically for the former Miss World but Ash is not complaining and describes being a full-time mum as "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”

We take a look at the life and times of Bollywood's international ambassador as she turns a year older.

Aishwarya in Mangalore on November 1, 1973. Her family belong to the Bunt community and speak Tulu. Aishwarya's father, Krishnaraj Rai, is a retired marine biologist while her mother, Vrinda Rai, is a writer. Ash's elder brother, Aditya Rai, is in the merchant navy.

Brought up in Mumbai, Ash studied at Arya Vidya Mandir High School, then moved to Jai Hind College and finally completed her HSC degree from Ruparel College.

While in college, she dreamt of becoming an architect. However, destiny's favourite child quickly fell into modelling instead. In the 1994 Miss India pageant, she took second place in a surprise defeat, narrowly losing the crown to dark horse Sushmita Sen.

But true to her indomitable spirit, Ash stuck to her guns and went on to beat 86 other contestants at the Miss World pageant in 1994.

As other beauty pageant winners had done before her, Aishwarya decided to try her luck in the movies. Three years after the Miss World title, she debuted in the Tamil film Iruvar, a fictionalised account of the lives of Dravidian political icons MG Ramachandran and M Karunanidhi. She played the role of actress-politician Jayalalithaa. Directed by Mani Ratnam, the film was a raging critical success.

Ash then made her Bollywood debut in 1997 with Rahul Rawail's Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya. Even though Ash won the Screen award for Most Promising Newcomer Female, her on-screen persona could not save the movie from being a box office disaster.

Ash's next was the Tamil musical Jeans.

The blockbuster, directed by Shankar, was India's official Best Foreign Language Film entry for the Oscars.

After the forgettable Aa Ab Laut Chalein, directed by Rishi Kapoor, Ash delivered a breakthrough performance in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.

It was love at first sight for co-stars Salman and Aishwarya when they met on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. On screen there was no happy ending for the couple.

The real life love story, however, continued for two years and they dated openly, a rare phenomenon in Bollywood then.

But their fairytale was to have no happy ending. After a two-year relationship, Aishwarya and Salman split acrimoniously, causing a media frenzy.

The relationship ended on a bitter note, with allegations that Salman had physically abused and verbally threatened her on numerous occasions. A few years later, a popular newspaper published transcripts from a phone conversation between the former couple, in which proof of Salman's use of threats and abuses became apparent.

Ash's talent for dance saw her cast in Subhash Ghai's Taal, for which she was nominated for a Filmfare Best Actress Award. The film was Ghai's last blockbuster.

In 2000, Aishwarya starred in Kandukondain Kandukondain a Tamil adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. It went on to become a major hit.

The same year, she starred in two movies with Shah Rukh Khan. In Josh, she played his twin sister while in Mohabbatein she was his sweetheart. Both films achieved blockbuster status. She also made her first film with future husband Abhishek Bachchan, Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke, which was a tragic flop.

After the success of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Sanjay Leela Bhansali cast Aishwarya as Paro in his magnum opus Devdas, where she was once again paired opposite Shah Rukh Khan.

The film was a huge hit and swept all the major awards; Ash won the Best Actress at the Filmfare, Star Screen and IIFA awards.

In 2003 Ash looked East with her Bengali debut in Rituparno Ghosh's Chokher Bali, based on a novel by Rabindranath Tagore. Critics heaped praise on her performance. Her blouse changing scene in the film, which implies she was topless, created quite a stir.

After Mohabbatein and Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin, Ash once again teamed up with future father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan in Khakee.

The hit film's star cast also included Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn and Tusshar Kapoor.

In Raincoat, an adaptation of the short story The Gift of the Magi by O Henry, she gave one of the most commendable performances of her career.The film was a commercial flop but a critical gem.

Gurinder Chadha gave Jane Austen's ‘Pride and Prejudice' a Bollywood flavour in Bride and Prejudice. Aishwarya played a desi Elizabeth Bennet, the novel's protagonist, adding her own charm to the role.

At this time, Aishwarya was dating actor Vivek Oberoi, who insisted on going public with their relationship though Ash was keen to keep this relationship low-key after her failed romance with Salman made headlines.

Ash and Vivek even appeared together at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. But, after working with Vivek in Kyun? Ho Gaya Na!, Aishwarya quietly ended the relationship and moved on with her life. Vivek Oberoi, apparently, was left devastated.

Ash then starred in The Mistress of Spices opposite Hollywood actor Dylan McDermott. The film adaptation of Chitra Divakaruni Banerjee's novel, directed by Chadha's husband Paul Mayeda Berges, was a miserable flop.

The late Jag Mundhra, best known for his erotic thrillers, took the true story of Kiranjit Ahluwalia who killed her abusive husband and made Provoked with Ash in the lead role.

After Raincoat and Chokher Bali, many consider it one of Ash's finest performances.

In JP Dutta's remake of Umrao Jaan, Ash was once again paired with her future husband, Abhishek Bachchan. She had the difficult task of recreating the role of a 19th century Lucknow courtesan, which had won ctress Rekha a National Award in 1981.

However, Ash and Abhi's sizzling chemistry could not repeat the magic of Muzaffar Ali's 1981 version. The movie failed, although Aishwarya looked overwhelmingly beautiful. But while Umrao Jaan may have had a tragic ending at the box office, it marked the beginning of Ash's real life love story with future husband Abhishek Bachchan.

Shedding not only her demure, girl-next-door, perpetually-in-love image, but her clothes, as well, Aishwarya reinvented herself with Dhoom 2.

The action sequel to Dhoom paired her opposite Hrithik Roshan, in the role of a sexy thief turned police accomplice.

Ash shed all the extra pounds and bounced back with a body to die for, sharing a crackling chemistry with Hrithik that remains one of the highlights of the film.

Her next film, once again opposite Abhishek Bachchan, marked a turning point in her life. At the premiere of Guru in Canada, Abhishek popped the question to her, and Ash accepted his proposal. Her father-in-law, Amitabh Bachchan, took to his blog to announce the happy occasion, creating a media furore like no other.

Guru, directed by Mani Ratnam, turned out to be a phenomenal success at the box office.

Aishwarya and Abhishek were married on April 20, 2007 in an elaborate wedding. Bollywood, however, took umbrage to the guest list, which included only a few close friends of the Bachchan and Rai families, blissfully ignoring many of the industry's biggest stars.

The Bachchans' marital bliss was topped off with a Padma Shri for the pretty lady in 2009.

Aishwarya continued to work after marriage with a superhit in Ashutosh Gowarikar's magnum opus, Jodhaa Akbar, where she played Rajput queen Jodhaabai opposite Hrithik Roshan's emperor Akbar.

The period film featured her as Akbar's wife, the woman who affected most of his decisions. While the movie generated some controversy for its depiction of Jodhaa bai and Akbar's relationship, it went on to become a huge hit. Once again, her chemistry with Hrithik had hit the mark.

Aishwarya and Abhishek's first film after marriage was Ram Gopal Varma's Sarkar Raj, the sequel to the very successful Sarkar.

Aishwarya, along with Abhishek, played a character with subtle shades of grey. Sarkar Raj was based upon Francis Ford Coppoloa's Godfather II.

She appeared in the role of a criminology expert, Sonia Solandres, in The Pink Panther 2, opposite everybody's favourite funnyman, Steve Martin.

She was the film's main villain and also the prominent eye-candy, holding her own against the Hollywood A-listers.

Ash's bilingual potrayal of the reinvented role of Sita in Mani Ratnam's Raavan and Raavanan met different fates.

Raavanan was a huge hit down South and the actress saw that as a potential ready to be tapped. Raavan, on the other hand, was one of the most reviled films of 2010.

Another Southern superhit followed, this time opposite the redoubtable Rajinikanth, in Enthiran. The dubbed Hindi version, Robot, was also a superhit.

Ash was once again seen opposite Hrithik Roshan in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Guzaarish. She played Hrithik's Florence Nightingale and reaped in the praise for her sensitive-but-strong portrayal.

Aishwarya, who has been attending the Cannes Film Festival as the face of L'Oreal since 2002, announced the launch of her next film, Madhur Bhandarkar's Heroine, on the French Riviera in 2011.

But then, unexpectedly, Aishwarya announced she was having a baby. Bhandarkar, furiously accusing Ash of blindsiding him, first shelved the film and then controversially dropped Ash from the project, replacing her with Kareena Kapoor.

Aishwarya seemed to enjoy her pregnancy thoroughly taking a long long break from work. This picture shows a heavily pregnant Ash checking in to the Seven Hills hospital for delivery.

New mom Aishwarya Rai Bachchan glowing and happy soon after the birth of her daughter on November 16, 2011. She was seen at Jalsa with Abhishek.

The new mum made her first major public appearance after her pregnancy break at Cannes in May this year.

Already under public scrutiny for failing to shed her pregnancy weight, Ash had a mixed bag of fashion hits and misses. She earned a thumbs up with her dresses and gowns but left style0watchers divided in a cream and gold embellished sari worn with a jacket-style blouse.

Her final red carpet appearance in a grey Elie Saab, accessorised with a huge smile and a carefree wave of her hand, unmindful of the fact that the dress clung to every plus size curve, was a fashion high for her.

Here's more Ash, in her first job after maternity leave. These images are from Aishwarya's jewellery campaign for Kalyan Jewellers, for whom she inaugurated a showroom in Kochi on August 19, 2012.

On the occasion of International Peace Day, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan attended the peace bell ceremony at United Nations in New York. Ash, dressed in a black and cream lehenga, was among a host of celebrities who took part in the ceremony which aims to end hostilities among nations around the world. Also seen with the actress was veteran Hollywood actor Michael Douglas (extreme right).

Ash looked poised and elegant in a blue Gucci dress at the UNAIDS event where she was announced as it's new Goodwill Ambassador. Who cares about weight anyway when we have that beautiful face, piercing light-eyed gaze and cascading hair before us.

Ash, who will be interviewed by British journalist Sir David Frost - best known for his interviews with former President Richard Nixon - said her weight has never been an "issue" with her. Her failure to lose the extra pounds in super-quick time had sparked an almost national debate, with some criticizing and others defending her.

The weight-watchers were stunned into silence at father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan's 70th birthday bash. Here she and husband Abhishek pose for a photo together. Ash, who looked lovely in a golden anarkali as on double duty juggling between her daughter and playing the perfect hostess even at the birthday celebrations

We got our first real look at Aishwarya's 11-month-old bundle of joy Aaradhya at the Big B bash. (This picture was posted on Twitter by @AishwaryaSpice_ ).

Last heard, Ash is keen on making a comeback to the silver screen. With the rumour mills rife that Karan Johar wants her as the lead in the remake of Hrishikesh Mukherjee's 1982 film Bemisal we are waiting to see more and more of Ash. We wish you a very happy birthday Aishwarya.