quite an interesting review. bit lengthy one. nice to read from a different viewpoint.
On Fri, Feb 22, 2008 at 2:16 PM, Pravinder Sheoran < [EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hi guys, > I do not know if this has been posted earlier or not. > I found this review very intresting. > It gives us an idea what other countries or societies think of our > country and our cinema (I hate calling it Bollywood). > Also, somewhere in review you will find that they are curious as well > to know what we think about them and their cinema. > Here is the link: > > http://www.christiananswers.net/spotlight/movies/2008/jodhaaakbar2008.html > > Featuring: Hrithik Roshan (Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar), Aishwarya Rai > (Jodhaa Bai), Sonu Sood, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Suhasini Mulay, Raza > Murad, Punam Sinha, Rajesh Vivek, Pramod Moutho, Ila Arun, Surendra > Pal, Visshwa Badola, Prathmesh Mehta, Shaji Chaudhary, Manava Naik, > Disha Vakani, Abeer Abrar, Indrajit Sarkar, Aman Dhaliwal, Nikitin > Dheer, Pradeep Sharma, Balraj, Sudhanshu Hakku, Digvijay Purohit, Uri, > Sayed Badrul Hasan, Dilnaaz Irani, Tejpal Singh Rawat, Shehzor Ali, > Ulhas Barve, Jassi Singh, Raju Pandit, Bharat Kumar, Rajiv Sehgal, > Gurmmeet Singh > Director: Ashutosh Gowarikar > Producer: Ashutosh Gowarikar, Ronnie Screwvala > Distributor: UTV Motion Pictures > > "a sixteenth century love story about a Mughal emperor and a Rajput > princess" > > Producer's Synopsis: "`Jodhaa Akbar' is a sixteenth century love story > about a marriage of alliance that gave birth to true love between a > great Mughal Emperor, Akbar and a Rajput princess, Jodhaa. > Politically, success knew no bounds for Emperor Akbar, After having > secured the Hindu Kush, he furthered his realm by conquest until his > empire extended from Afghanistan to the Bay of Bengal, and from the > Himalayas to the Godhavari River. Through a shrewed blend of > tolerence, generosity and force, Akbar won the allegiance of the > Rajputs, the most belligerent Hindus. But little did Akbar know that > when he married Jodhaa, a fiery Rajput princess, in order to further > strengthen his relations with the Rajputs, he would in turn be > embarking upon a new journey—the journey of true love. > > The daughter of King Bharmal of Amer, Jodhaa resented being reduced to > a mere political pawn in this marriage of alliance, and Akbar's > biggest challenge now did not merely lie in winning battles, but in > winning the love of Jodhaa—a love hidden deep below resentment and > extreme prejudice. `Jodhaa Akbar' is their untold love story." > > "Jodha Akbar" is an epic romance made in India. It stars former Ms. > World and "Queen of Bollywood" Aishwarya Rai and Hrithik Roshan. The > story is based on a true story about a Rajput Hindu princess who is > married to the Muslim leader Akbar in a political marriage. As time > passes, the two learn about true love and tolerance. > Bollywood for the Uninitiated > > Before the actual review I think it is important to initiate some into > Bollywood. Bollywood is the name given to the Indian movie industry. > It is the second largest in the world behind the U.S. and certainly > the most unique. Unlike the other film industries of the world, India > clearly has its own distinct style marked by several features. > > First, Bollywood films are usually much more family friendly than > Hollywood or other international films. There is almost never a sex > scene, nor nudity, nor for that matter even a clear kissing scene. In > fact, India censored a kissing scene from a recent movie. Some readers > may even remember that there is a warrant for the arrest of Richard > Gere for laying a big fat kiss on one of their actress' neck in > public. Consequently, parents rarely need to worry about their kids, > save the occasional cuss word which Indians seem to think is a regular > part of the English language (the Hindi language is often mixed with > English) and violence. > > The second feature of Bollywood films is that most are musicals. Even > in a horror film it is not uncommon to see the stars stop and start > singing and dancing. The musical numbers, however, are not typical of > American musicals but have a style all their own. It is hard to > describe except that they often feature flashy costumes, a unique > dancing style, and music that is a mixture of many genres, but still > distinctly Indian. > > Bollywood also usually features (but not always) a strong sense of > humor. Few movies in Bollywood are pure dramas ("Jodhaa Akbar" is an > exception). If anyone has ever seen a movie by Indian born director M. > Night Shayamalan, you will be familiar with the unique style of humor > Indians are born with. Satire and humor are mainstays of Bollywood > films; even in the melodramatic of movies. > > Bollywood films are often accused of overacting and overdramatizing, > but this is intentional. Bollywood films seek to dramatize through > emotion rather than sheer realism. With a few exceptions Bollywood > fans should not expect to see a 'slice of life' in Bollywood movies, > but a dramatization of life. > > Finally, Bollywood films are never short. They try to give you your > money's worth. With as much as thirty minutes or more worth of songs, > the average movie is nearly three hours in length. The good news is > that, unlike American cinema, Indian cinema features intermissions. > Since this is the time that people buy popcorn and cokes, it is odd > that more American movies still refuse to have intermissions for long > films (like the Lord of the Ring trilogy), but should you see a > Bollywood film in the local theater, asks whether or not the > intermission is retained. > > If the reader has never seen a Bollywood film, and is reluctant to > shell out $10 for one, then I recommend starting with the English > tribute to Bollywood 'Bride and Prejudice' starring Aishwarya Rai, the > 'Queen of Bollywood,' and directed by the woman who brought us 'Bend > It Like Beckham.' If you enjoy it, then you might try true Bollywood > films like 'Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gham,' 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai,' or > 'Veer-Zaara.' > "Jodhaa Akbar" Review > > "Jodhaa Akbar" is a historical drama set in the sixteenth century. It > is also the most expensive Bollywood film ever produced at $10,000,000 > American. However, that $10,000,000 goes much further in India and the > movie has the look and feel of a $100,000,000 epic in the U.S. "Jodhaa > Akbar" is filmed on location at many beautiful sites including some > scenes at the famed Agra fort. The costumes and sets are beautiful as > well. The film has the look and feel of a great epic and the musical > interludes do not seem out of place as one might assume. The best song > is presented as part of a festival to honor Akbar; thus it fits in > perfectly. Aishwarya Rai is perfect at the beautiful Jodhaa and > Hrithik Roshan performs well as the Muslim king. From a cinematic > standpoint the only real criticisms include some cliches, such as a > 'mauno e mauno' showdown at the end of the movie and the runtime which > is well over three hours. Will Americans sit in the theater reading > captions for over three hours? Experts have already suggested that the > answer to this question will determine the future of Bollywood epics. > > From a moral stance the first ten minutes of the film should carry a > strict warning for parents. The opening battle scenes are graphic and > include an elephant stepping on someone's head, another elephant > stepping on someone's chest causing him to cough up spurts of blood, a > severed arm flying through the air with blood splattering, and > numerous other violent battle scenes. However, after these graphic > opening scenes the movie is strictly a mild PG affair thereafter, but > parents should be very aware that the nature of these early scenes is > the equivalent of an R rated movie. There is also the odd addition of > a homosexual/transvestite man serving as the head eunuch. In reality > such a thing would never have occurred and it feels very odd and > anachronistic. Outside of this there is little of a strictly moral > issue to offend. Even the love scenes are done without sex or kissing. > In fact, the only time Akbar's lips touch Johdaa's is when he kisses > her on the forehead. You can, however, see some cleavage and Hrishik > has a scene reminiscent of Conan the Barbarian where he flexes his > bare muscles while practicing with a sword. > > The greater issue is not moral but religious. The theme of the film is > tolerance, but its depiction goes beyond history and may actually > serve to be self defeating by promoting a naive view of Islamic > dynasties. This is not to say that Akbar the Great was not a great > Muslim ruler in the context of his times, nor does this alter the > enjoyability of the film, but it is relevant inasmuch as both India > and the U.S. are fighting against Islamic extremists. > > Even before "Jodhaa Akbar" hit the theater it was hit with controversy > over its historical accuracy, or lack thereof. The Rajput community > has traditionally been ashamed of the fact that one of their kings > 'sold' off their daughters to Muslim kings in the name of peace. > Unlike the film, the Rajput princesses (Akbar had nine wives) were > required to convert to Islam before the marriage. In the film Akbar > does not require her to convert to Islam and even builds a Hindu altar > for her in the Harem. He tells his soldiers not to force the > conversion of their subjects, goes through a Hindu wedding ceremony > with Jodhaa, and gives a wonderful lecture on honoring his subjects > regardless of their religion. Unfortunately, much of this is an > exaggeration of the facts. Akbar did lift the tax on Hindus and > refused to tear down their temples, but Jodhaa did convert to Islam > before the marriage and he did not build any Hindu altars. This > depiction of Akbar serves the purpose of the film in promoting > tolerance, but also promotes a naive view of Islam. Consider the > remark in the film that 'Islam gives women equal rights to pursue > divorce.' It is possible that Akbar gave such rights to women (I could > not confirm this) but few Islamic societies give women any such > rights. In fact, Sharia law gives the man the right to beat his wife, > or even murder her if she 'shames' him. In Saudi Arabia a woman was > recently arrested, stripped, and beaten for sitting with a man at > Starbucks when she was not married to him. The nobility of the film is > welcome, but the reality is that India is in the same war on terror as > America, and Islamic extremists are the enemy. We cannot fool > ourselves into believing that most Islamists are tolerant. > Where to see it > > Chances are "Jodhaa Akbar" will not be playing you local cinemaplex. > You may find it at an arthouse theater or perhaps a Hollywood Theater > chain if you lucky. Additionally, if you happen to live in the Dallas, > Houston, Chicago, or Maryland areas then you can look up Funasia which > plays Bollywood movies. They are the only major movie houses to carry > Bollywood films in America, so if you don't live in these areas and > don't have a Hollywood Theater complex near you then you may have to > wait until it comes out on DVD and get it from Netflix or a similar > outlet. Nevertheless, the fact that "Jodhaa Akbar" is playing in > America at all is a good sign for the Bollywood film industry which > seems to be reaching its golden years, while Hollywood's golden years > were left far behind in the 30s and 40s. > > Violence: Heavy / Profanity: None / Sex/Nudity: None > > See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers. > > Viewer CommentsSend your comments > > Positive - This movie had it all, epic battle scenes, intrigue, > romance, betrayal, beautiful costumes, Indian music... I was pleased > with the way marriage was portrayed so nobly by the main character, > and the honor with which he treated his wife and others. The movie was > very clean, but very romantic at the same time. The story is based on > an Islamic ruler taking a Hindu bride so the the film is replete with > images of the worship of these false gods. This could be offensive to > some Christians. What was also distressing was the comparison with so > many of Hollywood's offerings, where marriage is treated with distain, > and intimacy between men and women is portrayed so often in a trashy > way. I am wondering why America, with a Christian heritage, is > seemingly more advanced into degradation in their entertainment > offerings, and what other nations think of us and Christianity as a > result. > My Ratings: Moral rating: Better than Average / Moviemaking quality: 4.5 > —Diane, age 51 > > >
