Movie profile: Ashutosh Gowariker

Imagination steeped in History

Maybe it is the hype, maybe it is the star cast or after seeing the preview, maybe it is the stunning visuals that made Jodhaa-Akbar one of the most awaited movies next year. Indians all over the world are eagerly waiting to usher in the New Year with this period drama directed by Ashutosh Gowariker and with good reason. It seems that they have been waiting forever while the grand epic has been shot. And now, finally, Gowariker is ready to talk about his project too.

Is Jodhaa Akbar based on history and fact? Gowariker, looking every bit the gentleman you might encounter on India's roads every day, smiles. While the story is based on a historic fact, much of it is his imagination. The fact is the marriage between the great Mughal emperor Akbar and the Rajput beauty Jodhaa. For the rest, Ashutosh has let his imagination do the work of how the romance between the emperor and the lovely princess blossomed and how it changed the course of India's history. He promises that his movie will be a love story seen through history. Like K. Asif's magnum opus Mughal-e-Azam? He smiles patiently and clarifies that he had absolutely no intention to compete with Mughal-e-Azam. Jodhaa-Akbar is in a class of its own and its maker wants that informed to the world.

The actors are his dream cast, he reveals. Who but the masculine and handsome Hrithik could have played Akbar? And who but the ethereal, sensual beauty of Aishwarya Rai could have portrayed Jodhaa? Their onscreen chemistry is amazing and Gowariker is convinced that it will transmit itself to moviegoers and keep them spellbound. Does he believe that a Hindu-Muslim love story has the potential for conflict? 1562, the year in which the story takes place, was indeed a time of political and religious conflicts but he believes that the theme of his story is romance and how love shatters these man-made barriers.

The preview has made many an Indian woman gaze enviously at Aishwarya’s jewelry in the film. Are they authentic and faithful to the period of the film? Gowariker emphatically affirms this and points out that the jewelry and costumes were carefully researched and based on paintings from the period. Jewelry was cut and made in a different way and several designers worked hard on recreating the look under designer Neeta Lulla’s careful supervision. Critics believe that a costume drama will not work at the box office. Recently, Sanjay Khan's Taj Mahal - A Love Story was a resounding flop. Gowariker points out that several films set in today's times do not work either. He firmly believes that the presentation, the script and the way a story is told is most important.

Has he considered how historians might look at his film and how they might be his most harsh critics? The veteran director agrees with that completely but clarifies that he has only taken a fact from history and developed it into a story. At the end of the day, Jodhaa-Akbar is the story of how Jodhaa and Akbar came to love each other. He has concentrated on telling that story in an interesting manner. So, the film is based on a single historical fact which he has developed based on his imagination. He also met historian Irfan Habib of Aligarh University who loved the plot and several other historians from Jamia Millia and Mumbai University. He also consulted with the Maharani and Maharaja of Jaipur who are the direct descendents of Jodhaa before starting the film. Later, the mahurat of the film was conducted at the Jaipur City Palace. And finally, he has Omar Khayyam Saharanpuri as cultural advisor. With these experts behind him, he is confident that his film will work.

Look back at past Ashtosh Gowariker offerings to the silver screen and you will have no doubt that Jodhaa-Akbar is one unique film that viewers will enjoy - costume drama or not.