‘Please Don’t Hate Me’: Sneha Ullal Reveals What Happened When She Met Aishwarya Rai

Actor Sneha Ullal has revisited memories from the early days of her Bollywood career, reflecting on her debut film with Salman Khan and the constant comparisons with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan that surrounded her entry into the industry.

In a recent interview, the actor spoke about her experience working on Lucky: No Time for Love, the film that introduced her to Hindi cinema in 2005, and recalled her first meeting with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan during that period.

Salman Khan’s Support on the Set of Lucky

Sneha Ullal said Salman Khan played a key role in helping her adjust to the film industry during her debut project.

“Salman Khan supported me a lot during Lucky shoot,” she said in a conversation with AlphaNeon Studioz.

When asked whether the superstar ever lost patience with her during filming, given that she was a newcomer while he was already an established star, she dismissed the idea.

“Not even once. He was very patient with me, very supportive. Salman Khan didn’t show the Salman Khan attitude to me that people know about,” she said.

The romantic drama, directed by Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru, marked Ullal’s entry into Bollywood opposite Salman Khan.

How Sneha Ullal Entered Bollywood

Ullal revealed that she never initially planned to pursue acting. At the time, she was still in college when the opportunity for Lucky came her way.

According to her, friends of Salman Khan’s sister Arpita Khan Sharma noticed her and recommended her for the role while auditions for the film were underway.

“I never wanted to come into acting. I was in college,” she recalled, adding that several people had previously encouraged her to consider films, but she was not particularly interested.

“I have been a tomboy and I’m not glamorous,” she said.

Comparisons With Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

When Ullal made her debut, much of the attention surrounding her was linked to her striking resemblance to Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Media outlets and fans frequently described her as the actor’s “lookalike” or “doppelganger”.

Reflecting on that phase, Ullal said the comparisons did not affect her personally.

“The PR activity was like this. Obviously, I was coming in with Salman Khan, so people would recognise me like that,” she explained.

“But it never bothered me because I was very young and had no ego. I have never been beauty-conscious.”

She also recalled that the comparisons began even before her film debut.

“When Aishwarya Rai became Miss World at that time, I was becoming Miss World in my own world because when she got recognised globally, I became famous in my small world since many people used to tell me that I look like her,” she said.

The First Meeting With Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Sneha Ullal also shared details about the time she met Aishwarya Rai Bachchan for the first time during the early stage of her career.

Given the intense media comparisons between them, Ullal said she felt slightly nervous about the encounter.

“I met Aishwarya once, and she said ‘Welcome to the family. Welcome to Bollywood’, something like that,” Ullal recalled.

Because of the ongoing comparisons in the media, Ullal said she apologised to the senior actor during their conversation.

“I told her, ‘I’m sorry, please don’t hate me’. There was so much comparison in the media at that time, I didn’t know if she took offence,” she said.

According to Ullal, Rai Bachchan responded warmly, making the interaction memorable for her.

Sneha Ullal’s Career After Lucky

Following her Bollywood debut, Sneha Ullal appeared in the 2006 Hindi film Aryan alongside Sohail Khan.

She later expanded her career into Telugu cinema, making her debut with Ullasamga Utsahamga. Over the years, she worked in several projects across industries.

Most recently, she appeared in the Telugu drama Nilakanta.

Despite the early comparisons that shaped public perception of her career, Ullal has often said she prefers to be recognised for her own work rather than her resemblance to another actor.