'Jodhaa Akbar' is Gowariker's first attempt at romance

By Prithwish Ganguly

MUMBAI (Reuters) - “Jodhaa Akbar”, the Mughal-era love story of Emperor Akbar and his Rajput consort, marks filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker's first foray into the genre of romance - something he wasn't too keen to take up.

Romance was not a vital ingredient in Gowariker's previous projects "Lagaan" (2001) and "Swades" (2004), but is the essence of the Bollywood epic opening in cinemas on Feb. 15.

"This is the first time I am doing romance, where romance is the focal point of the film," Gowariker told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. "I was sceptical, I was apprehensive."

The 39-year-old filmmaker said he agreed to do the film when he realised there was little recorded in history about the relationship between Akbar and Jodhaa.

"We don't know how their personal private moments together were," said Gowariker. "So, the excitement was to recreate all of that by imagination."

Considered the greatest among all Mughal emperors, Akbar ascended the throne at 13, but he quickly secured political success by a shrewd blend of military aggression and diplomacy.

He won the allegiance of the Rajputs after he entered into a matrimonial alliance with Jodhaa - who is said to have later wielded a strong influence on the emperor.

"I thought it had a dramatic love story which happened post marriage," said Gowariker.