Why Abhishek Bachchan and Salman Khan’s IIFA picture is going viral

A picture of Salman Khan and Abhishek Bachchan at the IIFA 2022 awards in Abu Dhabi has blown up on social media. The picture, which was originally shared by IIFA’s official Instagram account on June 4, was reposted by several people, including paparazzi.

The buzz around the image was due to Salman Khan’s former relationship with Aishwarya Rai, who is Abhishek Bachchan’s current spouse. Aishwarya and Abhishek also have a ten-year-old daughter named Aaradhya.

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The picture also included Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the head of the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Social Development seated in between the pair, appearing to be in conversation with Bachchan. Abhishek was in attendance with Aishwarya, and had earlier walked the green carpet with her.

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Fans had mixed reactions to this picture, most of them in awe of the actors’ ability to remain mature and composed regarding Aishwarya and Salman’s history. However, some also considered it comical that they were seated together with many trolls suggesting that Aishwarya should be edited in place of the Sheikh. One fan also commented that the encounter was “awkward”.

 However, the 22nd International Indian Film Academy Awards wasn’t the first time the duo had run into each other. It was reported that the pair were spotted together at Karan Johar’s 50th birthday party, and were cordial towards each other. It was also reported that Aishwarya Rai was under the same roof, but did not interact with Salman and maintained her distance while her husband greeted him.

These interactions were particularly sensitive due to the nature of Aishwarya and Salman’s relationship, with Aishwarya accusing Salman of being physically and mentally abusive towards her. Salman has since strongly denied these allegations, claiming that he “only ever hurt himself”.