Ashutosh Gowariker speaks on Jodhaa Akbar
- indiatimes.com
Why did you choose to focus on the 'love' element in the story?
Love is the greatest element for all stories. It can bring empires together or make them go to war with each other. Jodhaa and Akbar married first and loved later. My subject of focus in this film is the alliance of marriage between Jodhaa and Akbar. It is the alliance of Mughal and Rajput empires and finally of two communities - Hindu and Muslim. The greatest question that lies to be explored is 'how did this marriage take place' and that's what my film explores.
In India, even today there are arranged marriages and the couple ask each other some questions and tie the knot. They only get to really know each other after the wedding.
Do you think the star presence will overshadow the film?
When you see the film you'll forget that you're watching Hrithik and Aishwarya onscreen. You will only keep Jodhaa and Akbar in mind. When I imagined the story what came to me easily is the cast, I knew Hrithik would be right as Akbar, and Aishwarya would be perfect as Jodhaa. I approached both of them keeping only them in mind. So we called them and did a make up test and they were perfect for the roles. Thankfully they've been very dedicated to us.
You've shown a preference for making period films, why is that?
It's not a preference, but something that has just happened. When I make films I never keep in mind that 'I'm going to make a period film or a historic film.'
Do you think such films work well with Indian audiences?
I don't believe that only particular kind of films work or don't work with Indian audiences. What it boils down to is the story of the film. When a film doesn't work out a filmmaker definitely has to go back and analyse what didn't work. But this shouldn't influence his next film. The most important factor in this retrospection should be 'what went right' though.
It's said that the Rajput community has taken offense to their portrayal. True?
I've never felt that the portrayal of Rajputs was shown incorrectly. There is no outlandish message or jingoism in my film. Deep research has been carried out so that no one feels offended. I've taken great care to make a clean film.
What locations have you chosen?
The script required us to go to Rajasthan and Agra where we did the outdoor shooting. The rest of it has been done at Karjat in Maharashtra. Everything has been done keeping the script in mind. But the scale of grandeur is high.
Tell us about shooting the battle scenes?
Shooting a battle scene is always a big task, it's important to get the vital shots while the entire fight takes place.
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