Sonu Sood’s Sujamal, the real hero of Jodhaa Akbar, got sidelined in the worst possible way

Sujamal gets the entire hero’s journey in a film where he isn’t even treated as a significant enough character. He has a goal to achieve, he is faced with conflict, and ultimately he meets his fate but Jodhaa or Akbar get nothing apart from a love story. Akbar does get a climactic sword battle in the end and if you still have any energy left by that point, you are wondering about the pointlessness of the same because obviously, he will win the fight. He’s Akbar. We know he won’t die fighting against a nobody.

Sujamal, on the other hand, is living on the edge. He is risking his life to see his sister and risking his supposed kingdom to save Akbar’s life. He is ready to concoct a plan with the bad guys to claim his inheritance, but only if they aren’t really bad, because Sujamal cannot let go of his principles. And even after dying a tragic death, Sujamal’s arc is forgotten within seconds, much like how he was forgotten through most of the film.

The year Jodhaa Akbar released, there were enough jokes about the film’s duration. Ashutosh Gowariker was applauded by everyone for his ‘hit’ film that fetched him a few awards but in hindsight, the movie wasn’t worth all the hype that surrounded it. Jodhaa Akbar is no Lagaan, and looking back, it was probably this film that signaled the downward trajectory of a filmmaker who made history for India at the Oscars.