Aishwarya Rai’s breakup with Salman Khan affected her emotionally, reveals Prahlad Kakkar: 'She was abandoned by the industry, felt betrayed'

Aishwarya Rai and Salman Khan’s relationship has always been one of the most talked-about chapters in Bollywood. Their breakup in 2002 not only made headlines but also had a lasting impact on Aishwarya’s personal and professional life. Now, ad filmmaker Prahlad Kakkar has opened up about how the actress felt during that difficult phase.

Prahlad Kakkar on Aishwarya’s struggles

Speaking to journalist Vickey Lalwani on his YouTube channel, Prahlad Kakkar shared how Aishwarya’s breakup with Salman deeply affected her career. “I was just supportive to her. I told her, ‘Don’t worry about it.’ She said, ‘But the industry…’ What hurt her the most was being abandoned by the industry for Salman. She really felt that betrayal,” he recalled.

Not the breakup, but the bias

Kakkar further revealed that Aishwarya’s real pain wasn’t from the breakup itself, but from the industry’s biased treatment toward her. “She wasn’t upset about the breakup. She was upset that everybody took Salman’s side and not hers. The truth was on her side. She didn’t trust the industry anymore because it wasn’t playing fair. I could understand if she was wrong and the other party was right, or if both sides were treated equally. But nothing, it was completely one-sided."


Aishwarya Rai and Salman Khan’s breakup in 2002 brought an end to their much-talked-about relationship, which had started after their 1999 film Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.

Meanwhile, today Aishwarya is happily married to Abhishek Bachchan and the two are parents to their daughter Aaradhya. Salman, on the other hand, has stayed single and continued to enjoy a thriving film career.

Aishwarya and Salman's projects

Aishwarya was last seen in Mani Ratnam's Ponniyin Selvan II. The Mani Ratnam directorial featured an ensemble cast, featuring Vikram, Aishwarya Rai, Ravi Mohan, Trisha, Jayaram, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Sobitha Dhulipala, Sarath Kumar, and others.

Salman, on the other hand, is currently shooting for his next, Battle of Galwan. Directed by Apoorva Lakhia, the film is based on the 2020 Galwan Valley conflict between India and China. He was last seen in Sikandar, which released in March. It was directed by AR Murugadoss.

See More: Prahlad Kakkar on Salman Khan's obsession with Aishwarya Rai, says he would bang his head on the wall: 'How do you deal with somebody like that?'