Padmavati row: Rajput outfits reject Bhansali’s olive branch, say they don’t trust him

The Rajput community leaders have rejected filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s contention that the movie ‘Padmavati’ upholds the honour of Rajputs and does not depict anything that may hurt sentiments.

In a video published on YouTube on Wednesday, Bhansali had stated that the film starring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor does not have a dream sequence between Rani Padmavati and Alauddin Khilji.

However, Rajput Sabha president Giriraj Singh Lotawara, on Friday, said that they didn’t have faith in Bhansali and would not allow the film to release unless it was cleared by a panel of experts.

“We don’t trust Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Apart from the Khilji episode, there are other distortions in the film. The Ghoomar (traditional folk dance of Rajasthan) is not performed in the way it has been shown in the film and the queens never take part in the dance. We want an expert committee comprising historians and other intellectuals to clear the film first,” Lotawara told HT.

When asked if he would agree to Bhansali’s offer to watch the film before it is released he said, “I don’t want to watch the film as it is full of distortions.”

The Rajput Karni Sena, which had demolished the sets of the movie in Jaipur and reportedly hit Bhansali, has also warned the director to show the movie with “historically correct” facts. Later, a set of the film in Kolhapur was vandalised and set on fire.

“In September, someone from Bhansali’s team had called and told us to see the film. We asked them to show it to historians but they have not complied. We will not allow distorted facts to be shown in the film,” Karni Sena president Lokendra Singh Kalvi said.

The official Twitter handle of Padmavati shared the Bhansali’s video on Wednesday.

In the video link, Bhansali said: “I’ve made this film Padmavati with a lot of sincerity, responsibility and hard work. I have always been inspired by Rani Padmavati’s story and this film salutes her valour and sacrifice. But because of some rumours, this film has become a subject of controversy.”

“The rumours claim that the film has a dream sequence between Rani Padmavati and Alauddin Khilji but it’s something that I have already denied, even in writing. Now through this video, I am reiterating that in our film, Rani Padmavati and Alauddin Khilji have no such scene together which hurts anyone’s sentiments,” he added.

“We have made this film with a lot of responsibility and have kept the pride and honour of the Rajputs in mind.”

Padmavati, which is set to release on December 1, has still not been submitted to the CBFC for certification.

BJP MLA and former Jaipur royal family member Diya Kumari has also lent her voice to the campaign against Padmavati, saying the film’s release would “not be allowed” if it took “liberties” with history.

Meanwhile, members of the Rajput community have also taken to social media to register their opposition to the film. On Facebook, many have inscribed their profile picture with the phrase ‘I oppose.’