On a third viewing on DVD I am confirmed in my opinion that this is not only the best historical film produced in India but that is as good as the best Hollywood films such as Gladiator and Braveheart. Both the latter films are not historically accurate but Asoka is as near the truth as one can get about Asoka most of whose history is also historical speculation. The film makes very credible narrative of the pre Buddhist phase of Asoka and his conversion. Kaurwaki is also a historical figure as she is the only queen whose name appears in Asoka inscriptions.<br /><br />The film is beautiful and imaginative and has beautiful scenery and music. It follows the Indian cinema conventions in including song and dance sequences which appeal to audiences not only in the subcontinent but across the Middle East, North Africa and South East Asia. <br /><br />Shah Rukh Khan is superb as the young Asoka. Especially well done are his sequences in Magadha with his brothers and father and his later scenes in war and the Kalinga battlefield with the remorse and repentance.I have certainly not seen anything in Indian cinema to compare with this. Laurence Olivier's Hamlet and Henry V come to mind. The film is worth multiple viewings and one should certainly own a DVD.