Nayandeep Rakshit (DNA; November 22, 2017)

The paparazzi culture that is fast growing in India, with photographers prying on celebrities almost all the time, often leaves artistes and other public figures vulnerable and even open to hurt on occasion. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan got a taste of this intrusion on Monday, on her father, Krishnaraj Rai’s birth anniversary, when she stepped out accompanied by her mother Vrinda Rai and daughter Aaradhya to do her Good Samaritan deed. The Bachchan bahu lost her cool at the photographers and videographers present at the hospital where she was sponsoring surgeries for 100 kids suffering from cleft lip issues.

From the time the trio —Ash, Aaradhya and Vrinda — were spotted entering the hospital, the photographers went berserk. Says an onlooker, “The photographers were screaming and shouting at each other. They were fighting for pictures whereas Aishwarya, along with her mom and daughter had already posed for the pictures. The bouncers tried to clear the way when the photographers got into a fight with the security there.”

That was not all. Inside, when the event began, the bullying tactics of some of the press photographers and camera persons continued. A member from the hospital tried to make an announcement on the mic several times asking everyone to maintain discipline but to no avail. That was when Ash stepped in and asked the media and the photographers to calm down. “Can you all please shush? We are standing here only,” she said while the lens men kept clicking. An irritated Aishwarya then reiterated, “Stop it, I’m talking. Ek second ke liye aap camera bandh kijiye (stop your cameras for a second).”

Aishwarya requested them politely again, asking them to maintain silence since the event was at a hospital and for a few minutes, everyone listened to her. But right after the AV was played, and the kids were brought in, the photographers once again started clicking. Ash then gave the photogs and the videographers a piece of her mind.

Teary-eyed she said, “You do not need to click my photographs. I’m asking you all to please keep silent. You guys don’t need these images or this clip. We are used to these events because we belong to this business. Please show some respect. This is not a premiere or another public event. There are children here. What’s wrong with you all?”

Nayandeep Rakshit (DNA; November 20, 2017)

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, who lost her dad Krishnaraj Rai earlier this year, is doing something special to remember him on his birthday today. Says a source close to the actress, “Aishwarya has decided to celebrate her father’s birthday in a special way by sponsoring surgeries for 100 children born with cleft lips and palates through the NGO, Smile Train India and announce the day as ‘Day of Smiles’.”

As the NGO’s goodwill ambassador, she has been supporting the international cleft charity for the past nine years, and through The Aishwarya Rai Foundation, her father had supported cleft lip and palate surgeries for 100 children in 2014.

The source adds, “She will be visiting a suburban hospital in Mumbai with her mother Vrinda Rai and her daughter, Aaradhya Bachchan, to meet cleft-lip patients and motivate the children to pursue their dreams.”