Big B and family watch Aishwarya perform in Delhi

New Delhi, March 31 (IANS) Big B and his family - wife Jaya, son Abhishek, daughter Shweta and her husband Nikhil - were in the capital Monday to watch daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai perform at NDTV's unveiling of "The Seven Wonders of India".

Abhishek, clad in a black formal suit, sported a new clean-shaven look. The actor said it was for a new movie "Ravana", a trilingual film in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi directed by Mani Ratnam.

"This look - it is actually for a movie that I am working on. This look is going to stay, at least for the time being," Abhishek Bachchan told IANS, running his hands over clean shaven cheeks, in response to a query.

Wife Aishwarya said she loved him just the way he was. "He is my husband and I love him as he is."

Abhishek reciprocated saying: "All men dance around their wives."

"Ravana", starring Abhishek and Aishwarya, is a contemporary interpretation of the epic "Ramayana", in which, according to media reports, Abhishek, the hero, plays a Ravana-like character who kidnaps Aishwarya, another man's wife, to avenge his sister's humiliation. He hides with her in the jungle, and the couple end up falling in love.

At the function Monday, Aishwarya performed with Shiamak Davar and troupe for nearly an hour showcasing the colours, heritage and popular music of India - to the beat of popular Bollywood numbers.

The anchors of the show, Vikram Chandra and Abhigyan Prakash, NDTV veterans, described Aishwarya as "another Indian wonder", in addition to the seven that NDTV in association with Tata Indicom unveiled at the star-studded ceremony.

The seven wonders include Jaisalmer Fort, the ancient Nalanda University, Red Fort, Konark Sun temple, Dholavira, Khajuraho, and the Meenakshi Temple. Also, two spiritual wonders - the Tawang monastery and the Golden Temple - were unveiled by Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan, respectively.

A fashion show showcasing the traditional textiles and weaves of India by leading designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee brought motifs, textiles and colours from the four corners of the country, including the northeast. The catwalk featured top models.

Unveiling the Golden Temple as one of the spiritual wonders, Jaya Bachchan said she had been to the temple several times. "I have visited the temple many times. You enter and something happens. It has a lot of energy and is very peaceful."

Big B said the Golden Temple was special because he was half Sikh.

The function was also graced by Aishwarya's parents and celebrities like actor Kamal Haasan, fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee, Maharaja of Mewar Arvind Singh, Ustaad Amjad Ali Khan, politician Amar Singh and artists Paresh Maity and Satish Gujral.

The seven wonders were chosen from a list of 220 sites. "This is a campaign to build awareness about what we have in our country, so that our monuments and heritage are looked after better and local communities are involved in conservation," chairman and director of NDTV Prannoy Roy said.

The channel will launch a campaign to promote natural wonders of India next month.

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