Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai has declined to be immortalised as a Barbie doll, due to her professional commitments.

It was earlier reported that representatives of the 35-year-old actress were in negotiations with Barbie's manufacturer Mattel, who planned to give the iconic doll a Bollywood face. But the deal did not take off.

Yet again on the doll's 50th anniversary, Aishwarya was approached to appear decked up as a celebrity Barbie.

"Mattel was keen to have the actress walk the ramp on Lakme Fashion Week 'Barbie dolled up' in a winning design as Single Likeness Barbie, which would be unveiled and auctioned for a charity of her choice, " said a statement issued by Aishwarya's spokesperson.

However, the actress opted out due to her prior commitments as she did not want to cause inconvenience to the film- makers she was working with by taking time out for the event.

But Ash's loss was Katrina's gain. Kaif is the Indian face of Barbie and she walked the ramp at the ongoing Lakme Fashion Week earlier on Friday morning marking Barbie's 50 birthday.

Mattel Inc's Barbie, on Friday kickstarted Mumbai's premier fashion event--the Lakme India Fashion Week 2009--with designers and models bringing the world's most iconic doll to life in Barbie-like looks and outfits.

After taking the Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week by storm last month, Mattel had invited Indian designers to a contest, asking them to create designs for the doll as their muse.

The show called "BarbieAll Dolld Up!" is the style icon's first in India and showcased life-size, Barbie-inspired looks, which were put together by designers like Wendell Rodricks, Neeta Lulla, Sonam Mehta, Shantanu & Nikhil, Jyoti Sharma, Vikram Phadnis and others.

The winning design by Nishka Lulla will be replicated on the actual doll this year itself. "There are plans to replicate the winning design on the doll within six months or so. It will definitely be this year and the doll will be a Katrina Kaif look- alike," a Mattel India spokesperson said.

The show-stopper, Katrina Kaif, was dressed in Lulla's winning design, which was a multi-hued mini dress, with an Indian twist.

Katrina is delighted with the honour, more so because a Barbie doll bearing likeness to the Bollywood actress is in the pipeline and will come as a great surprise to the world sometime soon. "Every girl at some point of time in her childhood has played with a Barbie doll," admitted Katrina, "and so have I. She makes a sweet, fun and lively companion."