Rumors are abuzz that Aishwarya Rai has been approached by ‘Bend it like Beckham' director Gurinder Chadda to play the leading role in her next film. After making a lighthearted comedy about young Asian women's desire to play football, Gurinder is in a mood to put the classic writer Jane Austen through Bollywood filters.

She is reported to be adopting Austen's ‘Pride and Prejudice' on celluloid. The film, tentatively titled ‘Bride and Prejudice', will not be a Hollywood film but a medium budget bilingual flick peppered with Bollywood sensibilities. Grapevine has it that Gurinder has approached Ash to play the role of the ‘Bride' in the film.

If everything goes right then there is a possibility that Ash will be seen acting in the film alongside the Hollywood star Joaquin Phoenix, who gave a polished performance in Oscar winning ‘Gladiator' as the villain Caesar and more recently in Shyamalan's ‘Signs' as Mel Gibson`s brother. Ace cinematographer Santosh Sivan is likely to handle the camera for the film.