Did Elle magazine dramatically lighten its cover image of Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan? That's the allegation that might be settled in court, if rumours are true that the actress might take legal action against the publication.

Rumblings started when fans of the starlet noticed skin-colour discrepancies on her cover (shown after the jump), and according to a source: "Aishwarya's first reaction was disbelief."

Although representatives from Elle claimed that the actress' skin was not lightened more than that of white models, this isn't the first time the magazine has drawn controversy for allegedly lightening cover stars' skin. When 'Precious' actress Gabourey Sidibe covered the mag's September issue, many also found her complexion to be dramatically different - and paler - than normal.