New Delhi: Ameesha Patel, who is presently enjoying the acclaim garnered by 'Gadar 2', has a deep affection for luxury handbags, a passion she has cultivated since the age of 12. In a recent interview, with Bollywood Hungama, the actress unveiled a glimpse of her extensive collection, which notably featured her most exorbitant bag. She jokingly mentioned that the cost of that particular handbag could potentially equate the price of a house!
Ameesha disclosed that her prized possession, a rare Birkin bag, currently carries a valuation of approximately Rs 60-70 lakh, and astonishingly, she possesses a total of 16 Birkin bags in her collection.
Speaking to Bollywood Hungama, Ameesha said that this was the "Rolls-Royce of bags" and one has to be on a waitlist for years to get a chance to buy a Birkin. "You can buy a house in place of this bag," she said as she showed her croc-skin Birkin.
Talking about the bag, she said, "The one I have is a crock Birkin. Birkin on its own is very difficult to get but when it comes in exotic skin which is ostrich, lizard, snake, or crocodile skin, it's very very hard to get. The exotic skin is the most valuable like you can buy a house in place of this bag. That's how you know the price wise and difficulty wise it is."
She further went on to speak about the price and confessed that it is almost worth Rs. 60 to 70 lacs but added that it is cheaper than the bags that celebrities like Rihanna and Victoria Beckham own as those have diamonds which go into millions.
Describing the bag, she added, "This is a size 35. This is a size 30. The largest size I have is 40. So, this one is a pink Croc - it was a brighter pink earlier but through the ages it's faced. It's got silver hardware. Here, you can customize your hardware as per your needs. This one is a white Togo leather with gold hardware. And this one was again customized by me. I gave them pink and blue combo shades and I wanted it in matte gold finish etc. It took about a year to get made. So, I gave the Hermes store the size, the colours, the combo, the leather choice etc."
"I keep them like babies like you would keep your child. All of them are cherished because if you can see none of them are run of the mill. You know all of them are limited edition. They're not the ones that you would typically find mass produced. Even within the brand itself. And they have all been out for a particular season, are hard to get and then you don't get them anymore,” she concluded.
Displaying her bags, she remarked that this was "just a drop in the ocean" as she has many more bags that she did not include in this video. Ameesha Patel went on to reveal that her initiation into the realm of luxury bags occurred with her first acquisition at the age of 12-13, a Moschino-Louis Vuitton school bag. Additionally, she reminisced about receiving her inaugural Chanel bag as a birthday gift when she turned 16.
Ameesha proceeded to exhibit her Goyard bag, yet another addition to her luxury bag collection. She chuckled as she mentioned that her household staff amusingly referred to it as a "sabzi ka thaila" (vegetable bag) when they first saw it. Ameesha light-heartedly concurred with their observation, acknowledging that the bag might appear quite simplistic. However, she added that she had personalized her Goyard bag and it took approximately 2-3 months.
Ameesha Patel marked her entry into the film industry with the 2000 release 'Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai', followed closely by another notable success in "Gadar: Ek Prem Katha." However, in recent years, Ameesha has noticeably reduced her film appearances. Nevertheless, she made a notable return to the silver screen with her role in Anil Sharma's 'Gadar 2', a film that has amassed a staggering Rs 500 crore in domestic box office earnings.