Remember when Aishwarya Rajesh spoke about the challenges she faced during her childhood?

Actor Aishwarya Rajesh, known for her roles in films like Kanaa, World Famous Lover, Vada Chennai and more, is currently one of the most well-known actors in the industry. Apart from her acting skills, the actor has always made headlines for several reasons one of them being her carefree and not shying away from the media. Talking about the actor, remember when Aishwarya Rajesh opened up about her childhood struggles.

During a TedX talk at IIM Trichy, Aishwarya Rajesh went on to speak about the challenges she faced during her childhood. Aishwarya revealed that she grew up in a housing board in Chennai. When the actor lost her father at the age of 8, her mother, who’s uneducated, had to go out to earn and bring up her four children.

The actor revealed that she was the youngest of four siblings and the only girl. Her mother didn’t know English or Hindi but would travel to Mumbai and procure sarees that she would sell to her family and friends’ circles in Chennai. She added that over the years, her mother also became a LIC agent and dabbled in real estate. “Even now, she tries selling LIC policy to my co-stars,” Aishwarya reveals.

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Aishwarya Rajesh's family

However, when she was about 12, Aishwarya's eldest brother died. He was in a relationship and she says the family really doesn't know whether he suicided or was murdered. Her second brother also passed away in a road accident within a short span of time. These events pulled her mother into a shell, and Aishwarya had to take up the household responsibilities quite rapidly.

Aishwarya revealed that her first job was to sell a brand of chocolate outside the store. When she started this job, she was paid Rs 225 and was only in class 11. The actor added that she had big hopes and eventually got into reality TV shows, where she even won a successful dance competition. She wanted to leap into cinemas when she learned that TV serial actors only got paid well if they had a movie experience.

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The journey was far from smooth, however. Aishwarya recalls that she faced all kinds of obstacles – from sexual harassment to cruel comments about her looks and personality. Ironically, her ability to speak Tamil was seen as a disadvantage in the film industry, she says. Aishwarya revealed that she has struggled herself all her life and also encouraged the audience to never give up.

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