MUMBAI: The much awaited, twice delayed music launch of an epic of love- Ashutosh Gowariker's Jodhaa Akbar finally took place at Mumbai's Grand Hyatt, amidst much fanfare.

Between Ash (Ashutosh Gowariker) and Aish (Aishwariya Rai Bachhan), there was a long list of guests who graced the event - Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Javed Akhtar, A R Rahman, Aushotosh Gowariker, Shatrughan Sinha, Sanjay Khan, Zayed Khan, Sonu Nigam and politician Amar Singh, among others.
UTV's foray into the music sphere is a big one - the music has been scored by none other than A R Rahman, who has himself sung a devotional sufi song (Khwaja Ji) in the album, a track that's likely to hang around the top of the charts for some time. Sonu Nigam has sung a romantic duet with Madhushree (In lamhon ke daaman mein).

UTV CEO Ronnie Screwvala, who is the joint producer of the film, told www.radioandmusic.com, "The singers are immensely talented and the music is good. The large canvas will give them exposure. I am completely confident that music is going to be liked by everyone."

The event, that started nearly two hours behind schedule in typical Bollywood style, saw the Grand Hyatt ball room decked to bring on a mogul ambience, to set the tone for the film.

The film, that was two years in the making, will finally be released on 15 February, the third and presumably final date for its release. Screwvala, on his part, described the event as a 'family gathering rather than a social gathering'.

Ashotosh Gowariker, took the dais and unfortunately, there was no one to ring the bell indicating his time-out. The man, in a rather colloquial manner, kept on thanking whosoever he could remember at that time. His discomfort was apparent and he ended by saying, "Making films is much easier than addressing group of people." Hrithik and Aish turned up, but only after two hours from the scheduled time. The only discordant note in the event was the unimpressive compere.

Also spotted at the event were Sonu Sood, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Ila Arun, Neeta Lulla, Sunita A Gowariker and Raza Murad. Sonu Nigaam was seen flaunting his chest, walking into the event in a deep V neck tee shirt.

The songs from the film, shown in the preview on Wednesday night -

1. Jashn-E-Bahaara - Javed Ali
2. Khwaja Mere Khwaja - A.R.Rahman
3. Mann Mohana - Bela Shende
4. In Lamhon Ke Daaman Mein - Sonu Nigam, Madhushree
5. Azeem-O-Shaan Shahenshah - Mohd. Aslam, Bonny Chakravarti