Aishwarya Rai Bachchan at the launch of an international watch brand’s sports collection on Friday. Picture by Pabitra Das

They fought. She giggled. They shouted. She giggled. They tumbled off the stage. She giggled. A tiny store in the city’s first mall went berserk. But she just giggled and... giggled.

Aishwarya Rai’s first visit to Calcutta as Aishwarya Rai Bachchan — to launch a sports collection of an international watch brand — triggered a terrible scuffle at Forum, but she seemed to enjoy it all.

Even as two foreigners representing the watch brand were busy searching for a backdoor escape route, Bollywood’s first bahu just kept giggling, long fingers often fashionably covering half her pretty face.

Wearing a loose white blazer over a black top, Ash didn’t even let Calcuttans speculate whether Little B was on his/her way anytime soon.

Finally, after minutes of hands-on combat between photographers and the event organisers, she stopped giggling and spoke.

“Nice…,” a heavy sigh filling the momentary silence. And then came the blow, in true Bachchan tongue-in-cheek style: “Thank you all so much for this incredible welcome. I truly hope everything (in the watch shop) is intact by the time I leave.”

For the last few minutes in the store, Ash did let go of her sarcastic tone. “Shaadi ke baad this is my first trip here and I thank everyone for supporting me in whatever I do,” she waved at the hundreds of onlookers at the Elgin Road mall waiting for hours. They didn’t have much of a choice, as Forum was virtually shut down, thanks to the elevators and escalators blocked by security personnel and policemen.

At the request of the organisers, Ash tried to do her bit to pacify the photographers. “Dada… sab ke camera dikh rahein hain mujhe… main bhi sab ko dikhungi…,” she offered in her inimitable style. “Please don’t push each other. Tasveer sab ko milegi… main yahin par hoon.”

Cue for a few more stock (not stork) lines from Mrs Rai Bachchan. “I am truly so happy to be here. I love coming to Calcutta. I have had the pleasure of working here with Rituda (Rituparno Ghosh) in two movies — Chokher Bali and Raincoat. I came here after Devdas. I came here way back after becoming Miss World. And whenever I have been here, the welcome has been so warm, so enthusiastic and very, very memorable.”

Memorable for her maybe, but certainly not for us, grumbled shoppers at Forum.