‘Bharat Bandh on Release Day’: Rajputs Protest Padmavati in Mumbai

Hundreds of protesters from several Rajput groups swept into Mumbai’s Azad Maidan on Monday, 20 November, protesting against Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s upcoming film Padmavati.

The protest was led by Rajput Karni Sena chief Lokendra Singh Kalvi, who reiterated that his organisation would not allow the movie to be released at any cost.

I found out that the movie’s release has been postponed, but no matter what date is set for its release, we will call for a Bharat bandh on that very day.Lokendra Singh Kalvi, chief, Karni Sen

Karni Sena chief Lokendra Singh Kalvi led the protest held at Azad Maidan against the release of Padmavati.
BJP MLAs Ram Kadam and Raj Purohit too joined the protest against the film.
Rajput women holding anti-Padmavati placards.

Bhansali has already screened the film for certain sections of the media. Why hasn’t he shown the film to the Rajputs?
Ram Kadam, BJP MLA

The Karni Sena chief spearheading the protest.
Protesters from various Rajput groups across the city made their way to the protest
Kadam added that they would not allow any other filmmaker to ‘alter’ history this way in then future.
Padmavati was to be release on 1 December initially. On Sunday, 19 November, Viacom18 announced its decision to postpone the release.
Deferring  the release date of Padmavati, without announcing a fresh date, was not a decision taken by filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali

It was  the producers of Padmavati who  decided to inform Bhansali that they had decided to postpone the release of the film “for  a more suitable Friday in the next couple  of months”. Sanjay Leela Bhansali said , ‘Ok,’ and  disconnected the phone.

For the filmmaker, the battle to get into the theatres on schedule, and thereby not succumb to the fringe bullying, had just ended.
“No explanation was given, none demanded by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. The fight has gone out of his spirit. He has poured his blood, sweat and tears into Padmavati. He is  now done. Now he has left the matter in the hands of his very capable  producers Viacom 18 Motion Pictures,” says an informed source.
Viacom 18’s sudden announcement on Sunday, about postponing Padmavati’s 1 December release has surprised the film’s entire team.
So, what prompted  to take this hasty decision?
Apparently, the complete failure of attempts  to pacify the protesters even after Bhansali recorded a video vowing there was nothing even remotely slanderous in his film had begun to worry Viacom 18.
Says a source, “The concern was not just restricted to the Indian bosses at Viacom 18. It went all the way to the headquarters in the US.”
According to a source, the command to defer the release came after all attempts to assuage suspicion about the content of Padmavati failed.
Says the source, “The final straw was the ‘special’ screening of Padmavati for two television journalists (Arnab Goswami and Rajat Sharma). On Friday, Shobha Sant, the CEO of Bhansali Productions flew to Delhi to screen Padmavati for Arnab Goswami and Rajat Sharma. What was meant  to be  a move  to influence  public opinion in favour  of the film turned out to be a futile PR exercise.

The protestors wouldn’t buy Arnab’s verdict on the film. His  taunting “I’ve-seen-THE FILM-you-haven’t” approach simply backfired. Worse of all, the CBFC chairperson, Prasoon Joshi, turned his face away from the glare of the controversy, berating the Padmavati team for jumping the gun and showing the film to key media persons before  the CBFC”.

Joshi  probably  expected Bhansali to approach him  directly. This didn’t happen.
In their defence a source close to the Padmavati  producers says the CBFC is not to blame for  the delay. “Prasoon Joshi is clearly under pressure. It  was very clear to that they would not be allowed to release the film before the Gujarat elections. Rather than wait for one more week and let the publicity costs escalate,  ordered by the high command, decided to  pull the plug on the release without further delay.”

The  fresh release date won’t be announced in a  hurry.“We are in  no hurry to announce the new date, we will do so only after gauging the situation,” says a source.