spirited away - pushya & ashlesha (cancer)
Main characters in Ghibli Studio's "Spirited Away" nearly all have Pushya and/or Ashlesha nakshatra.
As Hayao Miyazaki's most famous film, “Spirited Away" follows Chihiro as she ventures into the world of spirits and works in a bathhouse for a witch Yubaba.
Both Pushya and Ashlesha are located in the sign of Cancer, a watery sign which relates to the film's setting. Cancer natives may also feel strong ties to home, reflected in Chihiro's desire to return to the real world and get back her parents.
Lin Japanese VA (ashlesha sun, ashwini/bharani moon), English VA (dhanishta sun, pushya moon) Kamaji Japanese VA (ashlesha sun, mrigashira moon), English VA (swati sun, pushya moon)
Lin and Kamaji both help Chihiro throughout the film, and both are voiced by Ashlesha and Pushya natives.
Ashlesha's ruling deities are the Nagas, demigods who mythologically reside near clean waterways like rivers. Similarly, Lin in the film literally helps to clean a river spirit.
In the modern day, cleaning products are often created with chemicals and sometimes toxins. Ashlesha is also known to deal with poisons and Kamaji in the film also grinds herbs to bathe the spirits.
(Note: Interestingly, Levi Ackerman in AOT also has Ashlesha combined with his interest in cleaning)
Chihiro English VA (pushya sun, magha/p. phalguni moon), Japanese VA (pushya sun, hasta/chitra moon)
Dirty spaces themselves, however, are traditionally symbolised by Saturn, which also represents hard work and servitude.
Along with Kamaji and Lin, the main character Chihiro is voiced by a Pushya sun native in both the original and English dub, a nakshatra ruled by the planet. Not only does she work tediously, she persists, never complains and concentrates on her goal of rescuing her parents.
When No-Face -a classically Rahuvian character literally voiced by a Shatabhisha sun- offers her free gold, Chihiro refuses, demonstrating Pushya's strength of self-discipline and humility. Long term effort > fast material gains.
No Face (shatabhisha sun, bharani/krittika moon)
Pushya's adherence to hard work and balance, not cutting corners/using cheap tricks, stops them from falling victim to scams, shown by Chihiro not being consumed by No Face.
(Another interesting note: Shatabhisha's symbol is the empty circle, representating how it absorptive/consuming power. No-Face literally takes on others' voices after consuming them and reflects the personalities around it)
Zeniba and Yubaba Japanese VA (bharani sun, pushya/ashlesha moon)
The next character with either Pushya or Ashlesha is Yubaba and Zeniba (who are voiced by the same VA!).
The fourth-tenth house axis connects to the theme of sacrificing one's private life for public status and career or vice versa. Yubaba chooses a capitalistic lifestyle (10th house) while Zeniba, her twin, focuses on developing a comfortable home life (4th house), a choice that is celebrated in the end.
Yubaba confines her baby to quarantine him from "germs" (the dirtiness of the outside world) represents an Ashlesha overprotectiveness which may sometimes occur, a maternal instinct which can become throttling in some cases.
Meanwhile, Zeniba turns Bo into a rat to run on a treadmill, showing why ultimate growth/expansion/Jupiter is exalted in Pushya; sustenance (Moon, which rules Cancer) infused with structure/discipline (Saturn) allows people to develop properly.
Haku Japanese VA (dhanishta sun, uttara bhadrapada moon) River Spirit Japanese VA (pushya sun, mrigashira moon)
Although Haku, the boy who helps Chihiro and is Yubaba's student, isn't voiced by a Pushya or Ashlesha native, his VA likely has Uttara bhadrapada moon, which has similar energies to Pushya as both are ruled by Saturn.
Further, Uttara bhadrapada's deity is Ahirbudhnya, literally the serpent of the deep. Haku is literally a river/dragon.
Even the stink/river spirit, which barely makes sounds, is voiced by a Pushya native, cementing the heavy Pushya/Ashlesha energies of the film.
Boh Japanese VA (krittika sun, ashwini moon), Aogaeru (ashwini asc, purva bhadrapada sun, ashwini moon)
Last, but certainly not least, Boh is voiced by an Ashwini moon. I think it is cool to consider how Zeniba's emphasis on moderate hardship to ensure growth coalesces with the idea of effectively channeling Ashwini's dispersed yet plentiful energy. Also, isn't it cliché how the literal baby is played by an Ashwini native, given it's the very first nakshatra?
The frog that is consumed by greed is also Ashwini voiced.
Thus, I think it's fair to say that Spirited Away carries heavy emphasis on Pushya and Ashlesha, possibly shedding light on how these nakshatras manifest in the real world.
