Jodhaa Akbar - Movie Review

Ashutosh Gowarikar's "Jodhaa Akbar" is a well made movie by a technician, with very strong star cast and ably assisted by some excellent music.


Hrithik is brilliant and his on screen chemistry with Aishwarya is very good. His composed yet powerful performance shows his maturity as an actor. Aishwarya is good and she gives the feeling that seems to know what she is doing. There is a whole gang of other stars in the movie that support the main cast well.

Khwaja mere Khwaja and Shehensha songs are not only good but were picturized quite brilliantly. The directors attention to details, from sets to costume, lights and colors etc is commendable in this very long three and a half hour movie.

My problem is not so much so about the movie itself but about the history behind this historical movie. The director himself admits that the movie itself is only 30% original, our censor board only cares about explicit obscene and not willing to scissor any fact that is distorted. The fact is Akbar is an emperor who had at least seven wives and the whole Jodhaa marriage is nothing but a transaction to strenghten political tie. Just google AKBAR and you will have truck full of actual facts and not just someone's imagination or interpretation.

I don't believe in "history is open for everyone's own interpretation". Imagine making Lagaan with "Vaanjinathan" or "Bhagat Singh" as hero who played cricket match against British to get independence. Are we ready to talk rubbish or create stories about our own grand father or great grand father?

Our film makers have a social responsibility when they are delivering something historical. Any message that is delivered is as sensitive as "no smoking" or "anti corruption" campaign. Jodhaa Akbar is an imaginary love story delivered using Akbar as marketing catalyst.

Pictures Courtesy: www.jodhaaakbar.com

Who is the real husband?

While there is no doubt that Aishwarya is Abhishek's wife and not Hrithik's, there seems to have some questions and debate arising on who is Jodha's (played by Aishwarya in the movie "Jodhaa Akbar") real husband. Here's the scoop:

Jodhaa Akbar, a tale of love between Akbar and Jodha Bai, played by Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai, a section of Rajputs in Rajasthan has protested that the film is historically inaccurate and threatened to block its screening in the state.

Factually at least, they are on solid ground. Akbar never married Jodha Bai. It was his son, Prince Salim who did. Salim became Emperor Jehangir. And his son from Jodha Bai, Prince Khurram, succeeded his father as Emperor Shah Jahan. “All this goes to show that history is not settled business,” says Mahmood Farooqui, who is currently writing a book on 1857 but is better known as a dastango who has single-handedly revived dastangoi or the traditional art of oral storytelling in Delhi. “It is almost as if each generation has its own myths about the past.” “Those protesting the movie have two specific objections,” says Dilbag Singh, professor of Mughal history at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. “That a different person was married to Akbar. And, that there was no love affair between the two.” Iqtidar Alam Khan, the noted historian and authority on Akbar who teaches at Aligarh Muslim University, points out that Akbar did marry a Rajput princess but she was Harka Bai, daughter of the Kachwaha ruler of Amber, Raja Bharmal. “The erroneous tradition that Akbar was married to Jodha Bai can be traced back at least to the 18th century. That is when we find the first written reference to it,” he says.

Intersting reading. Also, I have never read so much history on Akbar in my entire life until I stumbled on this story.