Source: Sify
Date: 26 January , 2008
The movie Jodhaa-Akbar shows the formative years of Mughal emperor Jalaluddin Akbar, who was known as a great warrior, says filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker. "In Jodhaa-Akbar I am showing Akbar's formative years - from the age of 13 to 28. It was the time when he started taking charge of the empire. And it was the time when he was having political alliances," Gowariker told IANS in a telephonic interview from Mumbai. "The film also shows him as a warrior. So in the film his warrior image and his romantic side run parallel." The much talked-about film depicting the 16th century romance between Mughal emperor Akbar and his Hindu queen Jodhabai will hit the theatres Feb 15. Starring two of the hottest stars of the Hindi film industry - Hrithik Roshan as Mughal emperor Akbar and Aishwarya Rai as queen Jodhabai - the film captures the romance between the two after they were brought together by a marriage. However, one of the promos shows Hrithik in the battlefield saying, "Hum Hindustan ko galat hathon mein jaane nahin denge (I will not allow Hindustan pass into the wrong hands)".
So is the director keeping some surprises for the audience?
Ask Gowariker and he laughs: "That you will have to come and discover. The dialogue is a part of the story. Yes, there is a surprise in the film."
Unlike other filmmakers, Gowariker stresses on research work and says it helps create the right sets, design the right costumes and extract the right body language and pronunciation from actors.
"When you are creating another world, multiple factors come in play - like landscapes, which should give the feel of that period, and sets, which should be elaborated in detail. "Many factors go towards building characters like costume, makeup, jewellery and how that is created comes from research. For instance, simple words like takhlia (leave us alone) helps create the feel of the era."
Recently, jewellery worn by Hrithik and Aishwarya in the film was unveiled for the media.
"In Jodhaa-Akbar, one added element that emerged was jewellery. I wanted someone who would not only design it but craft it as well. And the only organisation I could think of was Tanishq. "Jewellery plays a significant role in the film. It defines characters. What an emperor wears in his chamber is different from what he wears in the battlefield or in court."
With Gowariker behind the camera and Hrithik and Aishwarya in front of the camera, the expectations are high. So does the film need high publicity?
"I don't think there is any overdose of publicity. There are so many channels in the country, so many newspapers; would you say that there is an overdose of them? Similarly, I don't think that there is an overdose of publicity. I don't think it is going to harm the film." K. Asif's Mughal-e-Azam is known for the perfect detailing of the Mughal era's grandeur and opulence. But Gowariker says that he didn't take any reference from the movie. "There is no reference of Mughal-e-Azam because it belonged to a later era. It showed Akbar when he was in his 50s and focused on the Salim-Anarakli romance. As far as the detailing is concerned, when Jehangir (who is also known as Salim) came into power, marble was introduced. During Akbar's reign it wasn't prevalent. Red Fort is all red, so from that point too there is no connection between the two films."
Romance and music go hand in hand. And one of the famous jewels of Akbar's court was Miyan Tansen, the greatest composer, musician and singer of the era.
"But my film has no reference to Tansen because he came in the later period of Akbar's life. While Akbar formed the navratan (nine gems) between the age of 28 and 35, my film captures his life from the age of 13 to 28."
The film has been produced by UTV and more than Rs.400 million has been pumped into it.
While the general perception is that corporate houses don't like taking uncalculated risks and directors are forced to make compromises, Gowriker says he didn't have to do any such thing while dealing with UTV head Ronnie Screwvala. "Not at all. UTV had a good association with Swades. Ronnie and I share the same vision."
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Source: Outlook India
Date: January 25, 2008
How was working with Ashutosh Gowarikar?
He’s one of the most evolved directors I’ve worked with. My primary reason for doing Jodhaa Akbar was that I wanted to work with him.
Your personal inputs to the role of Akbar?
I wanted Akbar to be my interpretation within the realm of the screenplay. I didn’t want to imitate or mimic what I might have seen.
Any difficulties you faced while shooting?
Hmm. There weren’t any particular difficulties that demarcated this one as more difficult than the other films I have done.
Is Akbar a complex character?
Very much so. In fact, that is what intrigued me and propelled me towards him.
Does a costume drama limit you?
On the contrary, it adds to the character. Costumes, jewellery...anything that makes the character more convincing is welcome.
Your first reaction to playing the role...
I did not look at Akbar from a historical viewpoint. I’m a believer in films and films are meant to entertain. I reacted purely to the drama and the emotions of the story. It could’ve been anyone’s story.
Have you succeeded in doing that?
You’ll find out once the audience sees it.
Does it hold promise, will it become a classic like Mughal-e-Azam?
We can only work within the boundaries, make sure it’s good, honest work. The rest is a consequence of that. It could become a classic, it could win the Oscars—you never know.
What is your take on the music?
When it’s A.R. Rahman, you don’t need to say much. It’s fantastic, magical, ethereal.
Your chemistry with Ash in Dhoom 2 has raised expectations....
We were coming from Dhoom and immediately got into Jodhaa Akbar—it was something we found very comfortable to do.
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Source: Indiatimes
Date: January 25, 2008
What is your role in Jodhaa Akbar? Are you playing the negative lead?
No, I am not playing a negative character in Jodhaa Akbar . I play the role of Sujamal, the brother of Jodhaa (Aishwarya). My character is very possessive about his sister and loves her to no limit. Even when Jodhaa has to get herself married much against her own wishes, Sujamal is the one who supports her throughout. My character is very significant in the context of the story.
How did it feel sharing screen space with Hrithik and Aishwarya?
It is every actor’s dream to act alongside such talented and huge stars like Hrithik and Aishwarya. So yes, it was a dream come true for me. And there was Ashutosh as well who guided me all along. He had instructed all three of us (Hrithik, Ash and me) that the audience should only see the characters that we were portraying and not ourselves. That kind of set the meter for us.
How did the role come to you?
You know, every actor is always waiting and wishing for that one phone call to come through. Ashutosh later told me that when he sat to think about Sujamal’s character he saw me fitting the character almost perfectly. And he thought that I was most suitable to pull off the role of Jodhaa’s brother.
There were reports that Hrithik wore a lot of heavy armor and his knees had to bear the brunt. Did you face any similar situation?
Actually no! Because I did not have to wear too much for too long. I had just about a scene or two where I had to wear these long costumes as we were playing Rajputs and believe me, it was difficult to carry them. The costumes used to get stuck a lot of times. And wearing these costumes, I even had to jump off a horse which did not make life any easier. So I can understand what Hrithik had to go through.