Our very own Aishwarya Rai is all set to make a big splash on the international arena in 2006 with three Hollywood movies featuring her to be released during the year.

With this she will also emerge as the only Indian heroine to achieve the distinction.

The Holllywood films 'The Last Legion', 'Provoked', and 'Mistress of Spices', are being lined up for release this year and her spirited performance in the films will make her an international star of repute, Aishwarya's Business Manager Harii Singh told here.

After making her debut in Hollywood with Gurinder Chhadha's 'Pride and Prejudice', the actress was determined to make a mark on the international circuit, he said.

Her journey from Miss World in 1994 to a super model and eventually Bollywood's 'numero uno' heroine to a brand ambassador and an international star has been really exciting, Mr Singh said.

Back home, the actress has several big-budget films like J P Dutta's magnum opus 'Umrao Jaan' opposite Abhishek Bachchan in which she portrays the title role, Aditya Chopra's 'Dhoom 2' opposite Hrithik Roshan, Ashutosh Gowarikar's 'Jodha Akbar', again co-starring Hrithik, will catapult her to greater heights this year, Mr Singh claimed.

Several leading film-makers, including Ketan Mehta, Mani Ratnam and Ratan Jain, are planning big films with Aishwarya as a central character, he said.

Aishwarya flew down to Mumbai from Jaipur on the eve of the new year to be with her parents, brother and sister-in-law. She took a days off from the month-long schedule of 'Umrao Jaan'.

The actress celebrated the New Year with her family members at her residence in suburban Bandra.

''Aishwarya is a very religious person attached to Indian customs and tradition,'' Mr Singh said. After performing pooja at home on the New Dear's day, she went to Siddhivinayak Temple to pay obeisance to Lord Ganesh and participated in the first arti at 0530 hrs.

The actress is leaving for Brazil in the last week of this month for the shooting of 'Dhoom 2'.