* http://bollywoodmaharaja.blogspot.com/2008/03/jodhaa-akbar-one-majestic-epic.html * ** *Aishwarya Rai Bachchan*, winner of Miss World in 1994, wife of *Abhishek Bachchan*, was put on this Earth to play Jodhaa, the fiercely independent yet totally devoted Rajput princess turned empress of all India.
*Hrithik Roshan*, son of *Rakesh Roshan*, husband of *Suzanne Khan*, too was born to play Jalaluddin Mohammed Akbar, the religious yet secular, the valiant yet ultimately peaceful Muslim emperor of India. *Ashutosh Gowarikar*'s romantic historical epic is lavish and exciting but also very human and emotional. The characters are not lost in the grand sets, the grand moments of history nor in the grand battles. The movie is just as comfortable with the internal scenes inside a dark, closed room as it is with large war scenes with thousands of extras and elephants and horses and the clanging of shield and sword. Aside from Aishwarya and Hrithik, the cast includes *Sonu Sood*, *Ila Arun* (the very same woman who sang *Resham Ka Ruhmaal* and *Choli Ke Peeche*), *Kulbhushan Kharbanda* and *Nikitin Dheer*, carrying on Ashu's tradition of using big names for only the leads. The divine music is by *A.R. Rehman* with the poetry of *Javed Akhtar*. Jalaluddin (Roshan) is the first Mughal emperor to be born in Hindustan itself. Thus, he has a deep love for his country and its people and wants his people to practice whichever religion they choose since the people are mostly Hindu and the rulers are mostly Muslim. Raja Bharmal (Kharbanda) rules Amer, and agrees to rule under Jalaluddin, much to the chagrin of the other rulers. To solidify this deal, Raja Bharmal offers the hand of his daughter Jodhaa (Rai Bachchan) to Jalaluddin. She agrees to the marriage only if Jalaluddin lets her keep her Hindu beliefs and if he builds her a temple in her chambers. Admiring her straightforward nature, Jalaluddin agrees. This marriage is scandalous, alerting Maham Anga (Arun), Jalaluddin's nanny/most trusted minister and Sujamal (Sood), Jodhaa's cousin-brother/best friend. Sujamal, on a campagin to rule Amer, joins Sharifuddin (Dheer) to take down Jalaluddin, who now has won the favor of the people. They honor him by giving him the title Akbar (I'm not sure if this is just a name or if it means something. Jalaluddin is his given name as in, when he was born, his parents said, "And he shall be named Jalaluddin.") How Jalaluddin sees through the treachery of Maham Anga, wins the heart of Jodhaa and conquers the rebellious Sharifuddin forms this tale of love, war, deception and religious tolerance. Ashu makes some bold artistic choices. Choices that make a viewer ask: "Did he just go there?" But, in the end, the movie is better for it. For instance, in any other movie by any other director starring any other actor, showing Jalaluddin completely entranced by the Sufi singers (in JA's loveliest song, *Khwaja Mere Khwaja*) would be almost laughable. But here it works. Because we know that Jalaluddin holds his faith very dear to his heart as well as his patron Khwaja, or saint. Also, Ashu and *Haidar Ali*write very interesting scenes for the blanks in the history book. Most amusing are the scenes showing the Mughals baffled by Jodhaa's Hindu practices or the subtle, adorable courtship between Jalaluddin and Jodhaa. Also, the scene where Jalaluddin travels through the Amer market, dressed as a nobody is key in showcasing Jalaluddin as a good ruler and why he deserves the title Akbar. The Rajput feast is a great sequence as is the scene where Jalaluddin punishes his traitorous foster brother Adham Khan. Basically, the movie is full of exciting scenes and great dialouges. You really only feel the weight of the running time right before the intermission but that's only because that part of the movie is full of great intermission points and Ashu chose the greatest. (The moon reflected in the lake being the "o" in "intermission" was just classic.) *Jodhaa Akbar* can be seen as India's answer to the countless Greco-Roman stories being produced by America these days. The battle sequences have half the gore but maybe a third more the impact. This is because JA has real, live men battling each other not CGI clones. Also, these battle sequences include animals which just make things more awesome. Seeing an elephant crush a man is pretty cool even for me. I mean, normally I find battle scenes boring and I'm like, "Please just get to the drama and the romance! Jeez!" But these battles are exciting and original. They are not only well-choreographed but expertly performed by Hrithik and Sonu and Nikitin and Aishwarya. Yes, you read that right. Aishwarya gets two awesome, spectacular sword fights. And I know that it was really her and not just a double because a) her work in *The Last Legion* and b) her eyes are visible almost at all times in her fight with Sonu and her face is visible during her fight with Hrithik. Speaking of Mr. Suzanne Khan, his climactic fight with Nikitin Dheer's character is AMAZING as is the scene where he tames a wild elephant. No doubles were used in this movie or at least when concerning the two main leads. During the movie's many marvelous sequences, I thought to myself: How awesome is this movie! Deciding which Rehman soundtrack is the best is like deciding which *How I Met Your Mother* episode is the best. It's impossible! Each is great and awesome. This holds true to JA. The soundtrack is absolutely splendid. *Mann Mohana*, the CD's weakest song, is picturized well, almost humorously (in a good way). *Khwaja Mere Khwaja* is such an amazing, laidback qawaali. The choreography is so simple yet very intricate. The camerawork is just too, too good. *Jashn-e-Bahaara* is good in showing the the growing love between Jodhaa and Jalaluddin. *Azeem O Shaan Shahenshah* is magnificent as the people's tribute to Akbar the Great. The choreography is great and spectacular. *In Lamhon Ke Daaman Mein* is straightforward and so very romantic. I heard some lame comments about Aishwarya cheating on Abhishek and I wanted to yell out, "HRITHIK IS MARRIED TOO!" but I didn't want to ruin the song. Sure, the video is a bit racy but why not? It is their much delayed wedding night, after all. The songs are all very well-done. Speaking of *In Lamhon*, here you have two of Bollywood's most attractive stars who both need to prove themselves. Three-fourths of Hrithik's hits have been directed by his father and Aishwarya needs to break the "Married Actress" curse that *Kajol* and *Madhuri Dixit* have been (rather successfully) trying to break. The chemistry between Aishwarya and Hrithik is practically living and breathing. After their romp in *Dhoom 2*, they succeed again in completely different roles. They compliment each other and they look good together. The best thing is that, while it is no question if Jalaluddin thinks Jodhaa is pretty, we get to see Jodhaa admire her husband's good looks and swordfighting prowress. Just another great touch to make these larger-than-life characters more human. Of course, there's more to these two's performances than their rocking looks. Hrithik Roshan is completely at ease as Jalaluddin Mohammed Akbar. His dialogue delivery and his body language is spectacular. He seems extremely regal but also extremely human. He is just so good and perfect as Jalaluddin and he doesn't even have to resort to a caricature of a guy who has some nameless mental disease and finds an alien! Aishwarya Rai Bachchan delivers a performance that no other Bollywood actress has attempted before. She is a woman who is very, very traditional but also very modern in thinking. She knows how to take control and push her man to be his best. Sure, she cries a lot in her first few scenes but then she gives a fierce, passionate performance. For both her and Hrithik, this is their career best. The supporting cast is terrific. Ila Arun is fantastic as the evil Maham Anga, Sonu Sood is great as Sujamal but Nikitin Dheer takes the cake as Sharifuddin. The only real sour point is Amitabh Bachchan's narration. Sure, no one else has his kind of voice but why is he in everything?! I dare say that Jodhaa Akbar is my generation's *Mughal-e-Azam*. It is a historical epic with a very modern message: people should not be judged by their culture or religion. It's funny that nowadays a Hindu-Muslim marriage is taboo because one of India's greatest emperors married a woman outside of his religion and fell in love with her despite these differences. Do these trivial things really matter? No. This movie comes at the right time. We all can learn from the just Jalaluddin and from the devoted Jodhaa. And while * Lagaan* was overrated and *Swades* was preachy, Jodhaa Akbar accomplishes much of what those two films tried to accomplish in its three hour and thirty minute running time. Kudos! -- regards, Vithur Whatever God wants to give, no one can deny; Whatever God wants to deny, no one can give. Be happy always
