The protests against Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat seem to be only getting worse by the day. Where Karni Sena has already warned to burn down the theaters on the release day(January 25). About 200 Rajput women marched with swords in Chittorgarh yesterday calling it a ‘Swabhimaan’ (self-respect) rally that ratcheted up the pressure with memorandums to ban the film or give them permission to end their lives. Yes, above is a picture of the madness that hit the streets in Chittorgarh this Sunday. Also read: Padmaavat row: Rajput Karni Sena calls for a nationwide strike on January 25 to stall the release of the film
Marching under the banners of Jauhar Kshatrani Manch, Shri Rajput Karni Sena and Jauhar Smriti Sansthan, the women gave government officials memorandums addressed to the President, Prime Minister, Rajasthan governor, and chief minister. “They gave us the memoranda seeking a countrywide ban on the film,” said Suresh Kumar Khatik, sub-divisional officer of Chittorgarh. Speaking of which, Rajasthan government has now indicated it would file a review petition on Monday in the Supreme Court against the top court’s order that stayed the decision of some states to ban the film’s screening.
What’s more is that this ‘Swabhimaan’ rally started from Jauhar Sthal in Chittorgarh fort, the same place where Rani Padmini and 16,000 other Rajput women are said to have committed jauhar (self-immolation) in the year 1303, preferring to die rather than be captured by Alauddin Khilji, who was the Muslim king of Delhi back then. Can’t be a coincidence right?
However, contrary to all the above negativity, everyone associated with Padmaavat including Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone and Shahid Kapoor are highly confident and positive as far as the film’s release is concerned. Considering Akshay Kumar too has paved way for Padmaavat’s solo release on January 25 by shifting the release date of his film Pad Man to February 9, there’s all the more reason to hope for the film’s box office success. Will Padmaavat emerge victorious despite all odds? Only time will tell. Until then, keep watching this space for more updates.