My London: Aishwarya Rai

Aishwarya Rai tucks into cream teas at Brown's Hotel, splashes out at Harvey Nichols and seeks romance in Kensington Gardens...

Home is
Mumbai.

Where do you stay in London?
Since I've been married [to actor Abhishek Bachchan in 2007] I always stay in an apartment at the Crowne Plaza in St James's, as his family like it.

What were the last shows you saw in London?
I saw Cats and Les Misérables at around the same time. I always like musicals because they're uplifting.

What advice would you give a tourist?
I'd say hit the theatres and the parks.

Which London shops do you rely on?
I haven't yet managed to visit the flea markets
but I know that they stock quaint little pieces
which I like. I'm not much of a shopper but
Harvey Nichols is great.

What's been your best meal in London?
A cream tea with my family at Brown's Hotel.

What's your earliest London memory?
My earliest and longest memory is coming to London after winning Miss World in 1994. For me, it went beyond being a beauty queen. It was about being a 20-year-old girl from India on an international platform. A lot of people here assumed that I wasn't educated in India because of the way I spoke. London was meant to be home for a year but in reality I was travelling so much that I was never here long. When I come back to London I do feel at home, though, as a result of that time.

What's the most romantic place in London?
Kensington Gardens at sunset.

What do you do on a night out in London?
I'm not really a see-and-be-seen kind of person so I usually just go along with the plans of my friends and family. A good night out will involve a long dinner at a good Indian restaurant. I always seek the closest to home-cooked Indian food when I'm eating out.

What are your favourite discoveries?
When I was here in 1994 I enjoyed the Tube because I hadn't experienced anything like that. I'd sneak my way on and be anonymous but I haven't done that for a long time.

What's your life philosophy?
B positive is not just a blood group.

What would you save from a fire?
My family photo albums because those are moments that can never be captured again.

What are you up to at the moment?
After promoting my new film, Raavan, I'll be getting right back to work. I've made five movies this year so it's been busy. I'm going back to India to complete another film, then hopefully I'll be able to sneak in a holiday.

Who are your heroes?
As clichéd as it may sound, my parents are my heroes because I know how much they have had to face in life to accomplish what they have.

Where were the last places you went on holiday?
I had a very brief holiday in New York, which was a city break for a change, and before that it was the Maldives, which I loved. There was a huge interval between the two, unfortunately. I'm hoping to go home to Mumbai for my next holiday.