In contrast to The Terrorist -- the film
Santosh Sivan
is best known for outside of India -- Asoka is pure Bollywood
exuberance on a grand scale, full of flashy costumes, sword fights, and
energetic, nonsensical musical numbers. In order to stuff his film with
the requisite action and splendor, director Sivan takes quite a few
liberties with the facts of Asoka's life (which became the source of
some controversy in India). He even leaves the most important detail --
Asoka's conversion to Buddhism -- to a scrolling text at the very end.
Instead, the film focuses on the years of exile and bloodshed that led
to Asoka's eventual conversion. Exiled after his father abdicates his
throne and converts to Jainism, Asoka (played by Bollywood heartthrob
Shah Rukh Khan) meets and marries Princess Kaurwaki (Kareena Kapoor),
though neither of them knows the other's true identity. After being
called back to his kingdom upon his father's death, Asoka ascends to
the throne and embarks on a reign of cruelty that begins with the
slaughter of his treacherous brothers and ends with a final battle
complete with elephants, cavalry, and legions of soldiers. Like Lagaan,
Asoka is a lavish, epic-adventure designed to broaden Bollywood's
audience outside of India. It makes for great fun for those able to
ignore its blatant disregard for historical accuracy.
