Prince Charming, Shahrukh Khan is away from home on a business trip. But when he receives an unexpected visit from his long-lost daughter Ahlam, he decides to take her with him as a bride in a typical wedding ceremony. The couple becomes the latest in a line of the unlikely alliance's struck by Prince Humayun and his daughter Reema. Now, faced with a myriad of problems, Shahrukh Khan is forced to choose between the happiness of Ahlam and the stability of his government. If the kingdom falls to chaos, his father and the entire Khan family would be put to death. Will Prince Humayun put to his test the ultimate fate of his beloved daughter?
Ahlam is the daughter of King Shah Jahan and his wife Mumtaz. The two had united their kingdoms and ruled together for thirty-nine years. When Shah Jahan visited Ahlam, he vowed to wed her only if she agreed to marry him. Although this was a common practice in those days, it is something to be respected. In the end, it was decided that Ahlam would wed Shah Jahan.
As well as marrying the rightful king, Ahlam must reconcile her family disagreements. Her brother Hijra had sided with Shah Jahan's rivals and refused to accept the invitation to the palace. As a consequence, Hijra was imprisoned and later killed. It is rumored that he had a hand in killing his brother so that he could free his sister. It was this jealousy that resulted in Ahlam refusing to wed Shah Jahan and eventually leading to their divorce.
The story ends with Ahlam embracing her family and being welcomed by her brother Hijra. However, it can also be considered a happy ending for a character who had previously been unhappy and bitter towards his own family. On the other hand, the unhappy ending may be just that. It may simply be a story designed to make the viewer feel sympathy for Ahlam and hope that her situation will improve in the future.
Shah Jahan is played by the late Rajkumar Kohli. The three films that he has acted in are "Mankatha", "Shodh" and "Nights". Most of his character's dialogue is delivered in Hindi though some English is also used. It is interesting to note that the character of Ahlam is initially presented as an attractive young woman who is actively involved in the plot without making too many dramatic speeches.
Shah Jahan's story is one that we can relate to. It involves an arranged marriage between a prince and a princess. What is interesting about this marriage story is that the prince comes from a wealthy background and turns out to be a very poor Prince who wishes to marry a poor princess. To make matters worse, there is another prince who is interested in the marriage. This leads to a lot of internal struggles on behalf of both the prince and the princess who have to decide how to proceed.
In the second half of the film we find Ahlam struggling to maintain the relationship with her father. As she wants to pursue her destiny with her husband, she realizes that she has to realize that she has to change for her father's love for her. This is one of the most difficult things that Ahlam has to face. We come to know that her love for her father was real since she had always been shown as such in the earlier films where in fact we did not really see her life as a royal princess but more as an average girl.
The late Rajkumar Kohli has always been one of my favourite leading characters in Tamil cinema. I particularly like his contribution to the story. No doubt he played a key role in the rise of A.R.S.H. ( Arms Race) here in India. There is no doubt that if movies were judged by the amount of money and talent that they invested in the cast and the film script only then Rajkumar Kohli would have been a celebrity like him.
