In other Emma news, a new Jane Austen horror mashup novel hit Kindles last week. Emma and the Vampires, written by Wayne Josephson, takes another stab at the novel of manners-meets-horror movie literary genre.
Aisha opens to generally favorable reviews
Aisha, starring Sonam Kapoor, opened this past weekend to fairly positive reviews and strong box office receipts. Opinions on this film adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma ran the gamut from “meh” to glowing. Have you seen it? What did you think? Was it the Clueless rehash some people expected? Does it matter?
Bits and bobs from around the net relating to Aisha‘s premier:
- Anna’s Review
- Bollywood Ticket: Skip Aisha
- Aisha…an average movie
- Bollywood Spice Review
- Hindustan Times: Emma-Spotting in Delhi
- Wall Street Journal Friday Reviews: Aisha Dazzles Critics
- Bollywood Hungama Review
- Times of India Review
- SiFy Review
- Deccan Herald Aisha Review
- Digital Spy: Kapoor delighted by Aisha success
- The New Emma: Clueless in Bollywood (The New Yorker Blogs)
- The Hollywood Reporter: Q&A with Sonam Kapoor
- Progressive and Fresh: A discussion with Aisha director Rajshree Ojha
- Aisha image collection
Celebrate Georgette Heyer with Austenprose.com
During the month of August, Austenprose.com is hosting a tribute to legendary Regency romance novelist Georgette Heyer. Join Laurel Ann and the gang for thirty-one days of Georgian-by-way-of-the-20th-century fun!
Interview with Aisha director Rajshree Ojha – again!
Here’s another interview with Aisha directory Rajshree Ojha, this time presented by Yahoo! India. In the piece, Ojha addresses the fact that viewers will be consciously comparing the film to previous Emma adaptations…
“I am prepared for all the comparisons that are going to come my way but ‘Aisha’ is very Indian. If you remember Jane Austen said ‘Emma’ is a heroine only she is going to love. As a filmmaker when I read something I imagine it and that inspires me to make a film. A good literature, if you adapt it well makes a very good film,” says Ojha.
And for those interested, here’s the Aisha IMDB entry.
Interview with Aisha director Rajshree Ojha
IndianExpress.com recently published an interview with Aisha director Rajshree Ojha, highlighting both the challenges she’s faced as a female director in Bollywood and the striking social parallels within Emma’s and Aisha’s worlds.
Hope everyone’s having a great weekend. Happy Fourth of July!
Aisha trailer is out!
An Aisha teaser is out! The film is still set for an August 6 release.
Keep up with the latest Aisha promotional activities at the official site, on Twitter, and on Facebook. Those who are registered with the official website have been receiving digital postcards introducing the various characters from the film…
Those interested in reading more about the production might enjoy this short Times of India piece featuring young co-producer Rhea Kapoor:
“Pride & Prejudice Without Zombies” event begins this Tuesday!
Austenprose.com is sponsoring a zombie-free, non-mashup look at Austen’s Pride & Prejudice. The festivities begin this Tuesday and continue through mid-July. Participate in the group read and discuss this perennial favorite with Laurel Ann and other Austen fans!
Ayesha/Aisha website and Facebook page up now!
Producer Rhea Kapoor, sister of star Sonam, announced yesterday that the Aisha official site is live. There doesn’t appear to be much there at the moment, though you can register for email announcements while you’re there.
Rhea Kapoor is updating the Aisha Facebook page with production stills and other information as it’s available. On the wall, she recently wrote, “Register with your email address at www.AishaTheFilm.com and something interesting might come your way tonight ;-)”
According to the Facebook, the original August 6 premiere date is still a go. I haven’t heard whether or not the film sneak-previewed last weekend as initially hoped – my guess is that it wasn’t ready.
Twitter twits can find the official film account at @AishaTheFilm …