By Abhishek Bachchan has never been one to shy away from honest conversation. In a candid new interview, the Bollywood actor pulled back the curtain on his 18-year marriage to Aishwarya Rai Bachchan — and what he said is turning heads for all the right reasons.
Speaking with YouTuber and comedian Lilly Singh, Abhishek addressed one of the most talked-about relationships in Indian cinema. He discussed gender roles, ego, partnership, and the bond he and Aishwarya have built since long before they were ever a couple.
A Friendship That Came Before the Romance
Abhishek Bachchan traces his connection with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan back to the very beginning of his film career. The second film he made featured Aishwarya — and at that point, the two were simply colleagues and friends, not a couple.
That foundation of friendship, Abhishek says, shaped everything that came after. Through their courtship, their engagement, and eventually their marriage, the dynamic between them remained the same — two people working as a unit, without rigid roles or expectations dividing them.
This is not the story of two stars who fell in love on a film set and stumbled into marriage. It is, by Abhishek’s own account, the story of two people who grew into a partnership — gradually, deliberately, and authentically.
Why Abhishek Bachchan Calls His Marriage a “Partnership”
In the interview, Abhishek was direct: there was never any discussion about who would handle domestic duties and who would focus on career. He described the arrangement as something that simply “flows naturally.”
That kind of ease does not happen by accident. It requires both people to enter the relationship without a predetermined script — and Abhishek makes clear that neither he nor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan ever held one.
For many couples in the public eye, especially in Bollywood, the idea of the wife stepping back so the husband can take the spotlight has long been an unspoken rule. Abhishek rejects that model entirely. His language is deliberate: partnership, not hierarchy. Collaboration, not compromise at the expense of one person.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is one of the most celebrated actresses in Indian cinema history. She is a former Miss World, a Cannes red carpet fixture, and a two-time Filmfare Award winner. The idea that she would need to diminish herself for anyone — including her husband — is one Abhishek finds not just unappealing, but fundamentally contrary to his worldview.
The Role of Ego — And Why It’s Not a Bad Word Here
Perhaps the most striking moment of the interview came when Abhishek Bachchan used the word ego to explain why his marriage works — and then immediately reframed what that word means.
He explained that his sense of ego comes not from arrogance, but from self-assurance. He does not believe that someone else has to lose for him to win. He does not need his wife to hold herself back for him to feel confident or secure in his identity as a man.
This is a nuanced distinction that often gets lost in popular conversation about ego and relationships. Ego, in the toxic sense, demands that a partner shrink. The version Abhishek describes does the opposite — it makes space for the other person to thrive, because their success does not threaten his.
He added that he has no interest in being in a marriage where his wife has to stop doing something so that he can feel more masculine. And he credits Aishwarya Rai Bachchan with holding the same view — she has never expected him to limit himself either.
That mutual respect, grounded in individual confidence rather than insecurity, is the quiet engine driving one of Bollywood’s most enduring marriages.
Growing Up Watching His Parents Redefine Marriage Norms
Abhishek Bachchan did not arrive at these views in isolation. He grew up watching a marriage that modelled the same principles.
He pointed out that when his parents, Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan, married, Jaya was the bigger star of the two. That dynamic — where the wife carried more professional weight than the husband — was simply normal in his household.
For Abhishek, Amitabh Bachchan is not just a legendary actor and a towering public figure. He is also proof that a man can stand beside a more successful partner without losing his sense of self. That lesson, absorbed early, informed how Abhishek approached his own relationship with Aishwarya.
He also noted that despite being one of Bollywood’s biggest names, Amitabh Bachchan did not use that position to fast-track his son’s career. He did not launch Abhishek or produce films for him — though he did eventually produce Paa in 2009.
The subtext is clear: in the Bachchan family, merit and partnership have always mattered more than title or gender. Abhishek absorbed that value system, and it shows in how he talks about his marriage.
Divorce Rumours, Public Scrutiny, and Staying Strong
No account of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s marriage in recent years would be complete without acknowledging the sustained media speculation about their relationship.
Reports circulated widely claiming the couple had separated and were no longer living together. Rumours also emerged linking Abhishek to actress Nimrat Kaur, claims that Nimrat herself dismissed.
The couple’s response to this scrutiny has been largely non-verbal — continued joint public appearances, family outings, and a visible commitment to co-parenting their daughter, Aaradhya Bachchan. In August 2024, while in Paris for the Olympics, Abhishek displayed his wedding ring and stated plainly that he remained married, criticising the media for its handling of the story.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan made her own quiet statement at Cannes 2025, becoming the first Indian actress to wear sindoor openly at the festival — a gesture widely read as a direct response to the divorce narrative.
The Hindustan Times interview, from which the Lilly Singh conversation draws wider attention, arrives at a moment when the public is paying close attention to everything Abhishek says about his marriage. His words carry more weight than usual — and he appears to know it.
What Abhishek’s Words Mean for Bollywood’s Power Couples
Abhishek Bachchan’s interview with Lilly Singh is not just a personal moment of transparency. It is a rare instance of a mainstream Bollywood actor articulating, in clear terms, what a truly equal marriage looks like from the inside.
He does not use the language of sacrifice or compromise — the standard vocabulary when Bollywood celebrities discuss long marriages. He uses the language of structure, values, and design. His marriage works, he suggests, because both he and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan built it on a shared understanding from day one.
Eighteen years in, with a daughter, a global profile, and more public scrutiny than most couples will ever face, that foundation appears intact. Whether audiences agree with his framing or not, Abhishek Bachchan has made one thing clear: he has thought deeply about what marriage means — and he has no intention of following a script that does not reflect who he actually is.
Follow the Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan story as it continues to unfold — bookmark this page for the latest Bollywood news and updates.
