Biography

The message of my film is that love lives through the rise & fall of empires & unruffled by the tide of time - that the magic of beauty could even take shape in stone. Taj Mahal makes a living example of eternal love & unsurpassed beauty.

My film's music needed Tansen, Beethoven or Naushad - I was only left with the last choice! With the power of his spell bounding music, Naushad has managed to recreate the magic of the bygone era, perfectly complimenting the mood of the film. The music does not touch the eardrum & bounces back, but penetrates and lives in the soul of people.

About the Mughal Empire: "I am setting out to make a film that will bring this glorious passage of history to life. I am seeking to humanize it not as a docudrama but as an experience in living history. I want to put the audience on the lap of the Golden Era of the Peacock Throne, to experience the romance of Emperor Shah Jahan and his Empress Mumtaz Mahal - the romance that eventually turned into an eternal love story - The Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal is not just the story of a mausoleum; it is the story of a family. It is not only a romance, it is also a tragedy. The Moghuls were an amalgamation of fierce battles, bitter vengeance and sublime aesthetics. They loved with passion and hated with an equal passion. The scene was set for the clashing of arms, charging of horses and whipping off heads, in short for fratricidal violence, as brothers destroyed each other and sons rebelled against fathers in their rivalry for the throne. The greatest love story of all times was thus splattered with the blood of ambition. "