Aishwarya Rai in red, Abhishek Bachchan in black: Couple turns heads at Manish Malhotra's Diwali bash

Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan made a joint appearance at designer Manish Malhotra’s Diwali party in Mumbai on November 5, arriving hand-in-hand and posing for photographs together.

The star-studded gathering brought together several Bollywood celebrities, including Akshay Kumar and Madhuri Dixit, who attended with their families. However, Abhishek and Aishwarya drew considerable attention as they arrived at the event.

The couple pose together for photographers

The two remained together as they greeted guests and posed for the paparazzi. When photographers requested individual pictures, the couple reportedly declined, opting to be photographed together instead. Abhishek also drew Aishwarya closer as they posed for the cameras.

Their joint appearance comes amid periodic speculation about their marriage, although neither has publicly addressed the rumours.

From Cannes to Paris Fashion Week: Aishwarya's busy year

The Diwali celebration follows a series of public appearances for Aishwarya this year.

In April, she and Abhishek marked their 19th wedding anniversary. Aishwarya also shared family photographs featuring the couple and their daughter, Aaradhya.

In May, the actor returned to the Cannes Film Festival, where she has been a regular attendee since 2002. She appeared in several outfits during the festival, including a blue Amit Aggarwal couture gown, a powder pink Sophie Couture ensemble and a white pantsuit featuring feather and lace details. Aaradhya also accompanied her to the festival, appearing in a red gown with a cape.

In September, Aishwarya attended L'Oréal Paris' Le Défilé show at Paris Fashion Week. She closed the September 28 show in a couture ensemble and debuted a striking red hair colour. The event also featured fellow brand ambassadors including Kendall Jenner, Celine Dion, Eva Longoria, Simone Ashley, Viola Davis and Jane Fonda.

What are Aishwarya and Abhishek working on next?

Aishwarya's most recent theatrical release remains Mani Ratnam's Ponniyin Selvan: II (2023), in which she played Nandini. Before the historical drama, she appeared in Fanney Khan (2018), Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016) and Sarbjit (2016). She has yet to announce her next film.

Abhishek, meanwhile, is part of the upcoming film King, directed by Siddharth Anand. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and Suhana Khan, alongside Raghav Juyal, Arshad Warsi, Jaideep Ahlawat and Saurabh Shukla. It is scheduled to release in theatres on December 24, 2026.