Aishwarya Rai in America for Pink Panther

February 3 is an important date for Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. That's when her Hollywood career could finally take off when Pink Panther 2, the film she stars in, premieres in the US. In it, Steve Martin plays a bumbling French police detective Jacques Clouseau (made famous by Peter Sellers in the sixties and seventies), while Ash plays a detective alongside Alfred Molina.

Ash popped into the Dhaba Indian Cuisine on Lexington Avenue, Tuesday, clad fetchingly in a figure-hugging light blue-gray full-sleeve woolen top and jeans, a white shawl, and a pair of supernumerary goggles, to promote the new film.

She was squeezed into the gap between the restaurant window and a table upon which lighted candles and roses in glasses alternated � and television microphones bristled. Behind her was a pumpkin-orange curtain, barely held up by strategic patches of duct tape. And before her were about 40 people, sharing 250 square feet of floor space with six television cameramen, one roving cameraman and three media photographers.



Ash did not dwell on her role in the film, although she was all praise for her co-stars. She was lavish in her praise of Martin, calling him an instinctive actor and saying working with him was an enriching experience for her. And, yes, every day was a memorable experience working with Martin, John Cleese, Jeremy Irons and other actors of note.

"I learned on the job," she said, describing herself as a sponge that absorbed everything -- and promptly knocked over a glass containing some water she didn't have to.


She described how she had hoped to spend more time with pa (father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan) and ma (mother-in-law Jaya),
but that husband Abhishek had told her, 'It's Pink Panther, dude. What's wrong with you?' And so she did it.


In Pink Panther, Ash and Molina join forces with Steve Martin to catch a thief, who has been stealing artifacts around the world.

The actress, who was conferred the prestigious title of Padmashri last week, has been seen in international films like The Last Legion and The Mistress Of Spices earlier but has not been able to score a hit yet.


Ash will feature in films made in various languages this year. Besides the English film Pink Panther 2, there is her hugely-awaited Tamil film, Enthiran with Rajnikanth, as well as her Hindi films -- including her film with husband Abhishek Bachchan, Ravan, directed by Mani Ratnam.

So will Pink Panther 2 be Ash's ticket to Hollywood fame? Let's wait and see.