Abhishek Bachchan has revealed the personal reasons behind his decision to choose Jaipur as the home city for his Pro Kabaddi League team, the Jaipur Pink Panthers. Speaking on the podcast Future Unplugged, the actor-turned-entrepreneur opened up about his emotional connection with the city and recalled that it was also where his relationship with Aishwarya Rai began.
Abhishek acquired the Jaipur team in 2014, ahead of the inaugural season of the Pro Kabaddi League. The team went on to win the first and ninth seasons of the league. Explaining why he picked Jaipur for his first venture into sports, Abhishek said, “Jaipur is where I shot a part of my first film. It was an auspicious thing to start something new.”
Abhishek made his Bollywood debut with JP Dutta’s 2000 romantic drama Refugee. While the film was primarily shot in Kutch, Gujarat, some portions were filmed in Jaipur as well.
The actor revealed that Jaipur held an even deeper significance because of his relationship with Aishwarya. “It was also a city where Aishwarya and I started dating. It has an emotional part,” he said. The couple worked together on Umrao Jaan in 2006, portions of which were shot in Jaipur. Their relationship reportedly began around the time they worked on the film.
Abhishek also explained the inspiration behind the team’s name. While Jaipur is famously known as the Pink City, the choice of pink had a personal reason. “It was my daughter’s favourite colour at that point of time,” he said, referring to Aaradhya Bachchan, whom he and Aishwarya welcomed in 2011.
The actor further revealed that the Pink Panther also had a family connection, as Aishwarya played Sonia in The Pink Panther 2. “If you see, our Pink Panther has blue-green eyes which are the same as my wife’s. So, there is a personal connect to everything about Jaipur Pink Panthers,” Abhishek added.
Abhishek and Aishwarya first appeared together in Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke in 2000 and later reunited in Kuch Naa Kaho. They also featured alongside Amitabh Bachchan in the popular song ‘Kajra Re’ from Bunty Aur Babli. After Umrao Jaan, they worked together in Dhoom 2 and Guru. The couple announced their engagement ahead of Guru’s release and married in 2007. They later appeared together in Sarkar Raj.
Also Read : Abhishek Bachchan gets candid about early career insecurities in Bollywood: “Kaam milega, nahin milega”
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