AŠOKA AND THE ASHES

I just saw ‘Ašoka’. Shah Rukh Khan is flaming HOT in this movie. Why did no-one tell me this?Oh my gosh, he is just so delish, so scrummy, so… sigh. And the way he handles that sword of his… UNBELIEVABLE. I love him in many movies, but I think his cuteness factor in ‘Ašoka’ is through the roof. But I say the very same thing after watching a lot of SRK movies…

Hot smiling (sort of)...

Still hot scowling...

I’ve stayed away from ‘Ašoka’ for a long time, because I’m always a bit suspicious of movies that are always in the Bargain basement on Amazon.co.uk, Play.com and the theHut.co.uk (which is where I get a lot of my Bollywood DVDs. The ‘Beliefs, Blackness and Bollywood’ blog (see, Sheetal, I can do it, bahut bahut shukriya!!) has just turned me on to Nehaflix, and I’m not sure whether to thank t-hype or not for unwittingly showing me another place to spend money! – but I digress. Nehaflix is cool, though). Anyway, ‘Ašoka’ was always cheaper than other movies on my ‘regular’ websites (although, to be fair, so was ‘Monsoon Wedding’ and I really liked it), so I thought it just might not be very good. And the reviews I read on different sites were a mixed bag.

But I am SOOO glad I got this film. Apart from the fact that SRK is the very hotness in this movie:

it’s quite a good film. The fight scenes are really nicely shot, good cinematography, nice sets, good costumes, really well-produced. There are one or two discordant notes – some of the music is too ‘modern’ for the film, for example; but altogether it’s really solid and praiseworthy, as far as Bollywood productions go.

For those not in the know, in ‘Ašoka’, Shah Rukh Khan plays Prince Ašoka, a very brave (and according to SRK’s version, tres sexy) ancient prince. Kareena Kapoor plays an ancient warrior princess, Kaurwaki. Ašoka and Kaurwaki are both victims of power struggles, and they are also from enemy kingdoms. And so, naturally, a lot of ‘stuff’ happens – political intrigues, family tensions, divided loyalties fighting, and of course… prem. Kareena Kapoor is a pleasant surprise in this film. I almost despised her after watching her performance as ‘Poo’ in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. But here she is solid. Her acting in ‘Ašoka’ really cannot be criticised, she steps up to the plate and does a very good job in a pivotal role. I actually liked her strong but emotional and nuanced performance in ‘Ašoka’. Now I’m forced to acknowledge that Bebo actually is a good actress (so what happened in K3G?).

Random thought: the cute little Prince Arya (Kareena’s character’s brother) is played by an adorable kid. He looks especially sweet dancing with SRK in one of the musical numbers.

‘Ašoka’ is a good watch… I enjoyed it.

And now for the piece de resistance (my favourite SRK shot in this movie):

Gotcha!!