Lip-reading: Sonam Kapoor's take on Aishwarya Rai's infamous purple lipstick

Miss World 1994 Aishwarya Rai remains one of India's most high-profile celebrities more than two decades later. It goes without saying that she has sported a host of unique looks and been able to pull them off with grace even amidst some criticism. But her most recent look at the Cannes 2016 Film Festival has been the talk of the town.

The shocking purple lipstick she sported polarised opinion. Twitterati took to expressing their candid views through witty one-liners, most of which were in the negative.

The shade of purple Aishwarya Rai Bachchan used was certainly unconventional. Coupled with her smoky eyes, it invariably led the viewer to do a double take.

However, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan remained unapologetic about her look and saw it as a form of artistic expression. Her willingness to experiment underlies a strong confidence which is in itself admirable, and many agreed with this.

Sonam Kapoor, who is seen as something of a style diva, jumped into the controversy when she made her own comments on the commotion around Bachchan's purple lipstick look.

The younger actress said Bachchan had carried the look off incredibly well, and claimed that her reason for this bold choice was so that she would be talked about.

Well, if that were true, it certainly worked. And with her new movie Sarbjit releasing at around the same time, it seemed all the more convenient for her to be at the centre of attention. Not to mention that the eye-catching L’Oreal lipstick shade is now on everyone’s lips (even if it isn’t literally)!

However, Sonam Kapoor does not believe the look was aimed at endorsing L’Oreal, the brand both actresses are ambassadors for, and was just an individual choice made by Bachchan to provoke reactions.

Kapoor applauded Bachchan's success in getting noticed and discussed. After all, appearing in Amul Butter’s popular and topical advertisements takes some doing.

When Kapoor was asked if she would dare to wear purple lipstick, she said she had already done so for several photoshoots but was hardly talked about!

Well, Kapoor herself has sported some highly unusual looks before, such as her feather dress during the Cannes Festival 2015, and her time to shine will come soon!