Ashoka - The Hero

Friday, 31 December 2010 01:12

 
Do you believe in a world of superheroes where the good are protected and the evil vanquished? To all the fans of superhero stories who cheer at the magical powers of a great superhero fighting for humanity, there is great news! Ashoka – The Hero, the new boy wonder in superhero history, is going to enthral you in the movie screens come January.
 

 

Pre-Production | Production | Post-production

We have seen a lot of superheroes in the past, who have taken over the imagination of the audiences and children, in special. Shakthimaan is a brand that was quite popular in India in this genre. However, creating a superhero, one who is believable and can connect with the audience, is very difficult. That is why mythological stories are so popular in India, where there have been few other superheroes. This trend is going to break with Ashoka – The Hero. It is a 2D animated film that tells the story of a young boy, who idolizes his father, a policeman. The movie is under the banner of Illusion Interactive and distributed by Springboard Films - division of PVR pictures, Mumbai. The film has been produced by Gyanendra Jain and was directed by Gaurav Jain. The Hindi language movie is slated to hit the theatres on January 7th, 2011.

Ashoka – The Hero is Illusion Interactive Studio’s first animated film. God, haven’t they done wonders with an amazing script pulled out of from a simple concept. The experience of the studio in doing shorts and episodic contents is quite evident and their core strengths which include concept and production have come in winning notes. The movie made on a budget of 2.5crore rupees is being released with 50 prints. To add to the buzz and the eager anticipation are the efforts of the promotional vehicle which is coming up with licensing and merchandising. There are small cricket bats and bags, mugs and various other goodies to be taken home from various events held across the country, even as we prepare ourselves with the country’s next generation superhero.

Why, I have been asked did i choose to build my myth around the Emperor Asoka. Well, to be honest, Emperor Asoka, is a personal hero of mine. Ashoka has been one of the greatest emperors in the country. What is more remarkable is the fact that there are very few who have shown the kind of character transformation that Ashoka went through. To start with tremendous ambition and drive to gain and wield power and instead pursue peace and make such a critical choice, makes Emperor Ashoka, an admirable person and role model. His entire existence is a dichotomy and he isnt simply good or bad but much more complex. - Gaurav Jain

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