Thanks for the memories!

Better Late Then Never

An action-packed slog

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

I understand that movies are made for the sake of entertainment, but I am ashamed that the only type of entertainment that is appreciated by Indian viewers is romance, which this movie is really about. I read the comments section of this movie and I see a lot of people make excuses to why so much romance was involved in what should have been a serious dramatization of Asoka the tyrant and Asoka the saint. They say that without romance the movie would not have been entertaining. The ones that say this likely have never seen the real good stuff such as Lawrence in Arabia. Seriously, imagine Lawrence of Arabia movie, not imagine if several scenes portraying his multilayered character were replaced with some romantic scenes with a scantily clad beauty in the desert. That movie would have been laughed at globally. A similar form of adulteration was done in the plot of Asoka. I am startled by the kind of praise this movie has received despite the utter dilution and corruption of topic at hand. The problem with general Indian audience is they do not even know what makes a good movie. If someone made the movie Asoka without romance and mostly focusing on conquests and spiritual messages, the same fans who are praising this movie would have loved it and probably called their all time favorite. Problem with Indian movie making industry is you very rarely get movies that have been flawlessly directed and focused on a certain topic. This has made the fanbase laud mediocrity. I am terribly disappointed in Santosh Sivan who went this route, possibly at the behest of producers. I do not doubt Sivan's credentials, but someone like Gowariker would have probably made a far superior flick by condensing the romance to about 10% of what we saw. Sivan and SRK probably took this route to earn profits, but this movie was a huge disappointment at the box office. I believe that if this movie got a Gowariker treatment where he would not give two f***s about catering to the masses, the movie would have done much better.

The people who like the plot, like it because King Ashoka's life and philosophy were great. The movie is stupid! Acting specially sucks. Ashoka's life deserves better than a stinking heap of irrelevant music sequences , bad actors and illogical dialogs. Bollywood has produced far better movies on history and this is nowhere near them. Ashoka's change of perception was supposed to be the awesomest and most inspiring part of the movie which they ruined with shallow approach. Neither the dialogs nor the visual aspects have been successful in that. As an actor SRK looks better because other actors are even worse than him. Few scenes like his mother's death, his wrath and violence and his post war visit of the battleground are OK but don't make the movie any better.A whole universe of Indian heroes and philosophers need to be revealed to the world, who till date are buried under darkness. I am expecting movies with more depth in future.

When the ace cinematographer holds the megaphone what would you expect? Nothing but ethereal beauty on the silver screen. SRK:: For once he should be appreciated to have backed the project as a producer. All things said and done, it cannot be denied that he has taken leap of faith number of times in his career resulting in phenomenal success in his graph. Yes, Asoka falls into the same category. He gives his best to breathe life into the character of Asoka. The character is shown to be torn between the love for his mother, Kaurwaki and motherland. Kareena Kapoor:: Certainly you would carry the image of Kaurwaki for a few decades to come. Last time it was Rekha in "Utsav" and maybe Vyjayanthimala in "Amrapali". The cinematographer has left no stone unturned to present her in the best light possible. Her character is fleshed out strongly and therefore Kareena gets lots of scope to showcase her talent. Danny:: Reliable.Rahul Dev:: Good writing was warranted to make the character leave an lasting impression. Otherwise he demonstrated a well-chiselled frame.Hrishita Bhatt: Decent performance considering the scope of her character. Sadly Asoka could not do much value-addition to her standing in Bollywood.Ajith:: Down-south I am sure he was a huge heart-throb. Sadly went un- noticed in Bollywood. Additionally there was no meat in the character. Enigmatic lyrics were translated into melodious numbers by Anu Mallik, they were in top-form indeed,. Chroreography was top-notch. Special mention to Gayatri Jayaraman and Rajlaxmi R. Roy who featured in the "Raat Ka Nasha" & "Aa Tayar Ho Ja" songs. Sadly 'Asoka' ended up being compared to 'Lagaan' which released around the same time and therefore did not garner the due patrons.

Asoka (Without Sorrow), 2001, 171min, Dreamz Unlimited If you like Sparta 300 and Gladiator, you will love this movie. Writer-director Santosh Sivan set out to make this loosely historical epic young Emperor Asoka, one of the India's greatest emperors of the Maurya Dynasty from 273 BCE to 232 BCE.Though the story is largely fictional, Sivan uses actual historical figures and tells the story in the context of the events of the day. From its opening moments detailing Asoka's trust for the sword to the sumptuous splendor of the battlefield defining the skill of Asoka's swordsmanship, the visuals of the film Asoka are simply breathtaking. Blending an eye for detail in production design, Sivan brings the long-dead civilization back to life like no other Hindi film has done before. First and foremost, a big round of applause to not only Sivan for orchestrating this enjoyable historical jaunt and evocative cinematography, but also Manish Malhotra for the gorgeous costume design and John Kundan Pai for the beautiful production designs. Stunning ancient architecture, strategic use of curtains and lighting, and absolutely stunning garb work with the unique camera angles to bring the ancient era to light. Scholarly issues aside, this is the kind of film that defines the term 'masterpiece'– filled with spectacle and action, and telling a story of epic scope and humanity. Asoka is an enthralling and totally immersing production that will probably be viewed as a Hindi classic paving the way to films like Jodha Akbar.Asoka and Kaurwaki (unbeknown to her that he is indeed her love Pawan), gather their forces for the final show down confrontation known to history as the Battle of Kalinga, whose outcome decided the fate of civilization and destiny of Asoka. A man who began his life as an emperor but ended as a monk achieving what he dreamt of which is to become the greatest emperor in history, that is emperor of hearts. The reticence pays off near the end when screenwriter provides the characters with a provocative and literate debate about the nature of war.Though many will remember the film for its violent and edge-of-your-seat battles, there is a lot of humanity found within this film, which builds up nicely to the film's emotionally satisfying climax. Sivan chooses to devote a fair amount of time focusing on Asoka's worrier Princess Kaurwaki, played beautifully by Kareena Kapoor. Her character is as violent, sensual, and full of intrigue her counterpart Prince Asoka. This complex love relationship between two people from rival kingdoms is expanded upon from its historical reference to portray Kaurwaki as a strong willed and passionate woman. There are few of passionate (I say not enough) moments between Asoka and Princess Kaurwaki highlighted by the music sequences tossed in to balance out the brutal and savage war scenes (not to mention a smoking-hot wet scenes of Shahrukh and Kareena) making the film worthwhile to watch.What raises Asoka above the usual epic drama is not only the strength of its story but power of its performances. More on Isisbollywood RHK