A.R.Rahman is truly the support system of thisfilm. More than the musicit is his back ground score which lifts some ordinary scenes to acompletely different level. Amongst the songs Azeem –o – Shahehshah isone song that stands out.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Rony D’Costa K.Asif made Mughal-E-Azam in 1960 and the rest as they say ishistory. And now in 2008 Ashutosh Gowariker attempts “his story” ofHistory. His most ambitious film till date. Did he pass the test? Read on… Whenever someone takes too much time on making a film a standard comment comes from the hindi film industry people “Kya, Mughal-E- Azam bana raha hai kya?” Ashutosh’s reply could be “Nahi. Mughal-E-Azam ka prequel bana raha hoon”. Gowariker states very clearly at the beginning of the film that this is his version of the story and there could be other versions of it. I would like to see the other version because this one wets my appetite but doesn’t satisfy my hunger. So, what went wrong with this film? I say the SCREENPLAY.15 minutes into the film you start yawning because Mr.Bachchan gives you a history lesson before the actual historical could begin. And then the film begins and you wait and wait for the story to follow some structure but alas that never happens. A cleverly written battle sequences in the beginning of the film is clearly an attempt to hold the audience attention and it does succeed at that. But after that, the screenplay uses all the clichéd routes. For example there are introductions scenes to introduce both the lead. Like it was done in the 80’s . “hero ki entry” as it used to be called. There is a surrogate mother saas bahu track which reminded me of the Madhuri Dixit & Arooni Irani’s super hit film Beta. The screenplay is like a clipped chicken running helter skelter. It does not define the central plot of the film. Is it a love story? Or is it a film that traces the journey of Emperor Akbar? What it does is to try and mix both. Plenty of research has not been absorbed in the screenplay. Research has been fed through scenes. There was no need for a scene which explains that Akbar was an illiterate. It doesn’t add or subtract to the film. Scenes are strung together on a delicate thread of structure. Dialogues are quite difficult to understand. Most of the times it feels like you are watching a foreign language film and look out for sub-titles.Dialogue writer K.P. Saxena forgets the fact that a larger percentage of movie goers are not literate in chaste urdu & hindi. Everybody has a story to tell. Haider Ali too had a good story in hand. But, when it comes to telling it not everybody can tell a good story. Haider Ali is not an experienced screenplay writer and it shows. This film needed a very good writer even before it needed a good director. Ashutosh the director is honest towards its craft but not smart enough. He should attempt a smaller film next time to come out of this past. He has had enough of big budgets but he is still arguably the finest director hindi cinema has ever seen for a long long time. Hrithik tries very hard to stay true to character but fails. Hecomes up with a commendable performance, that’s it. At some places hegets into the Krissh mode though . Aishwarya fits the part perfectlyand has never looked so divine. But, why was the need to dress her upin cleavage & mid riff revealing transparent sarees. Nobody standsout amongst the supporting cast. Sonu Sood does his best to bring somecredibility to his role. A.R.Rahman is truly the support system of thisfilm. More than the musicit is his back ground score which lifts some ordinary scenes to acompletely different level. Amongst the songs Azeem –o – Shahehshah isone song that stands out. Chinni Prakash makes a grand comeback tohindi cinema. He deserves a nomination for best choreographer. Khwajamere Khwaja is a wonderful track but does not fit into the story andevokes unintentional laughter. Inn lamhon ke daaman mein infuses suchdelicate visual that will remind you of times when in a romantic numberall you could see was the hero & the heroine. Cameraman KiranDeohans, Art Director Nitin Desai & Stunt Co-ordinator Ravi Dewangive their best. You don’t expect anything less than this from suchmasters. The editing leaves a lot to be desired. Ashutosh should changehis editor pronto. You don’t see an editor at work but rather anoperator working on the commands of the director. With Jodhaa Akbar youwill not be disappointed but you will not be pleased either. It is afilm which commands you to watch it only on the big screen. a film thatis important and deserves 3.20 mins of your time. ** ½ (Above Average) http://boxofficeindia.com/reviews.php?page=shownews&articleid=105&nCat=movie_reviews&PHPSESSID=fb00694a24687677047aa32637918471
