Jodhaa Akbar (HINDI)

Cast - Hrithik Roshan (as Emperor Akbar), Aishwarya Rai (as Jodhabhai), Sonu Sood, Suhasini Mulay, Abir Abrar, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Vishwa Badola, Digvijay Purohit
Director - Ashutosh Gowariker
Producer - Ronnie Screwvala [UTV Motion Pictures], Ashutosh Gowariker [AGPPL]
Dialogues - K.P.Saxena
Cinematograher - Kiran Deohans [Aks, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham]
Editor - Ballu Saluja
Choreography - Vaibhavi Merchant, Bosco-Ceaser, Raju Khan, Saroj Khan
Costumes - Neeta Lulla
Lyrics - Javed Akhtar
FIRST LOOK

- 6 songs composed by ARR.
- One song by Alka Yagnik. "I'm also singing for 'Jodha-Akbar' - again for Aishwarya, though I suspect this time the songs will be in the background." - Alka. [Glamsham]
- One Qawwali by Sonu Nigam & Alka Yagnik. [A.R.Rahman had talked about him recording a qawwali "Khwaja Mere Khwaja" for a forthcoming film. This could well be it!]

- Recent reports say that Reliance - Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (R-ADAG) is negotiating with Gowariker for financing the film.
- Huge historical epic about the romance between Mughal king Akbar and his Rajput wife Jodhabai
- 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. Political success knew no bounds for Emperor Akbar (Hrithik Roshan). 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 Godavari River. Through a shrewd blend of tolerance, generosity, and force, Akbar won the allegiance of the Rajputs, the most belligerent Hindus. But little did Akbar know that when he married Jodhaa (Aishwarya Rai), 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.
- "You could say I've taken a historical decision to make a film called 'Jodha-Akbar'. It'll be a romantic musical. Jodha-Akbar' is one of the two-three scripts that I had in mind for quite a while. I finally zeroed in on this. It won't go into the older days of the pair. It would show them in the prime of their togetherness and probably end where 'Mughal-e-Azam' begins.I just want to dwell on a little-known facet of Indian history that hasn't been exposed in history books, let alone on screen. I intend to appoint a research team of historians and scholars from Delhi, Lucknow, Agra and Jaipur to guide me. Jodha-Akbar' would be a full-on period film without props. It would be expensive. But I'm not getting into highlighting the budget and making that a USP of my project. For me the product will justify the expenses." - Ashutosh Gowariker [Indiavarta]
- With this film, Hrithik gets a chance to play a benevolent Mughal emperor who dared to love and marry a Hindu princess. Says Hrithik, "It will have war, horses and swords. I will play a very young and virile Akbar. It's a very real drama, not theatrical at all. It's my first costume drama because I will wear a costume. But that doesn't mean it will be excessively dramatic. I have faith in Ashutosh Gowariker's abilities. His intelligent perspective during his narrative convinced me he can never make an actor look bad. He believes in the real and tries to capture the real. He never constrains the actor, but allows them to be natural on camera." [MumbaiMirror]
- Scholar Haider Ali Sahib is helping Ashutosh with the research for Akbar-Jodha.
- Hrithik and Aishwarya underwent lessons in horse riding and sword fighting for the film, in Oct 06.

CURRENT STATUS - Shooting started in Jaipur with a Mahurat shot on Nov 1st 2006. The shooting took place in Agra, Delhi, Jaipur and interiors of Rajasthan. Movie release slated for 25th Jan, 2008.