Considering the cold reception received at the box office by “Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani”, this period piece is an ambitious enterprise from the Shah Rukh Khan-Juhi Chawla production team. “Asoka” (pronounced “Ashok”) chronicles Prince Asoka’s ascension to the throne and the soul-destroying acts he commits to get there.

The film starts out in the middle of a conspiracy plot that would give “Julius Caesar” a run for its money. An insecure Prince Sushim (Ajit Kumar) secretly orders the assassination of his half-brother, Asoka (Shah Rukh Khan). Sushim is threatened by the possibility that Asoka’s many conquests in battle may bring him closer to snatching the throne for himself. Time is running out as their father, the king, is ailing fast.

Asoka foils all assassination attempts but fails to learn that Sushim is behind them. A frustrated Sushim, ever the politician, uses members of his family, including his father, to persuade Asoka’s mother that it would be safer for her son if he left the kingdom. The now fearful mother threatens to take a vow of silence if Asoka does not leave, so reluctantly, he does.

Asoka sets off on his travels, cutting his long tresses, which identify him as one of his kingdom’s royal family. He also takes on the name of his horse, Pawan, to ensure his anonymity. Asoka soon clashes swords (figuratively and literally) with Virat (splendidly played by Danny Denzongpa) in a series of hilarious encounters. The two eventually become friends.

Asoka also meets Kaurwaki (Kareena Kapoor), thinking her to be a simple tribal girl. Turns out, Kaurwaki is actually Princess Kaurwaki of Kalinga (rival to Asoka’s kingdom). Kaurwaki is hiding out with her younger brother, Arya (Suraj Balaje), a precocious, eight year old brat. The two royals are being protected by Kalinga’s most loyal soldier, Bheem (Rahul Dev), following the brutal killing of their parents (the king and queen) by unknown assailants, (yet another conspiracy sub-plot).

Love blossoms between Pawan (Asoka) and Kaurwaki, but separation is imminent. Several misunderstandings, mainly driven by Bheem’s crush on Kaurwaki and his loyalty to Kalinga, lead to Asoka thinking that Kaurwaki is dead. Meanwhile, Kaurwaki has no idea that Pawan is actually Prince Asoka.

Asoka returns to his kingdom and his warrior ways. He wages war on neighbouring kingdoms, successfully conquering them. Tension mounts when he decides to invade Kalinga, unaware that his opponent is none other than Kaurwaki!

“Asoka” is a visual treat of a film. What else would you expect when the director also happens to be ace cinematographer, Santosh Sivan. The battle scenes are spectacular (reminiscent of “Gladiator”) and the scenery throughout is a visual feast. The story may have been taken from ancient texts, but it has as many plot twists as a modern day soap opera. Khan essays his role very well, transforming his character from the happy-go-lucky prince into the blood thirsty, evil king. Kareena is also impressive as her character grows from a fragile princess to a hardened warrior. Danny steals the show in all his scenes, especially in the comic ones. Suraj Balaje as the young King Arya is at times bearable, but somewhat annoying the rest of the time. Ajit Kumar is suitably dastardly in his villainous role, while Rahul Dev’s wooden exterior seems to work for his character. I’m still not sure whether Rahul’s stoicism was deliberate or not. If it was deliberate then his performance was good, if not, then he got lucky!

The songs are all picturised well in terms of scenic views. Only three songs make it into the film. “San Sananan” is Kareena’s introduction. No wonder Asoka falls for her, given the amount of skin she has on display, (Manish Malhotra at work again?). Kareena is let down in the songs by her tomboyish demeanour – she lacks grace. “Raat Ka Nasha” is a little too visually erotic considering the mood of the song and the situation at that point in the film. The exotic dancing (reminiscent of “Jiya Jale” in “Dil Se”) seems out of place. Surprisingly, the innuendo-laden “Aa Tayyar Hoja” has the least sexually charged picturisation as the lyrics are offset by the comedy between Shah Rukh and Danny during and immediately after the song. Criticism has been made of the modern sound of Anu Malik’s compositions, but the songs don’t seem anachronistic in the film.

The pure, ancient Hindi dialogue is written, surprisingly, by Abbas Tyrewala, who is better known for writing very colloquial lyrics (Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar, Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega). Special mention must be made of Sandeep Chowta’s rousing background score. Santosh Sivan has successfully managed to blend an ancient story (how much is factual is debatable) with commercial film packaging. The result is engaging and at times surprising, but never boring.