Indian States Where Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmaavat Is Banned
Updated : January 15, 2018 08:42 PM ISTThe moment Sanjay Leela Bhansali announced that his next film after Bajirao Mastani is going to be Padmavati, based on an epic poem Padmavat by sufi poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi, different religious, caste groups along with fringe political outfits decided to protest against the film and do everything in their power to stall the film's release.
Padmavati was scheduled for a worldwide release on 1st December 2017 but it was postponed after the protests against the film took a nasty turn and Rajput outfit Karni Sena along with other groups threatened to burn down cinema halls and even placed bounties on the head of the film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and its stars Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh.
A few days back the news came that the film is going to be released on 25th January with a new title Padmaavat. A number of Rajput outfits are still threatening of serious consequences if the film releases and a few Rajput women have even threatened to immolate themselves. Seeing the ugly political turn the film's release has taken, a number of states are banning Padmaavat and giving in demands of the Rajput community which forms a sizeable vote bank.
Here are all the states in India where Padmavati is banned:
Madhya Pradesh: MP was the first state to ban Sanjay Leela Bhansali's directorial and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan called Padmavati a Rashtramata.
Gujarat: The Gujarat government has also banned Padmaavat even after the film obtained a clearance from CBFC. The government has banned the film in public interest and to maintain law and order situation in the state.
Uttar Pradesh: CM Yogi Adityanath also banned the film and blamed the film's director for hurting the sentiments of the Rajput community.
Rajasthan: The state has banned the release of the film even after the film has obtained a clearance from CBFC as the BJP government doesn't want to be on the wrong side of the Rajput community as the state goes to polls soon.
Bihar: The Nitish Kumar government ban has also imposed the ban on Padmaavat and the film won't release on 25th January. The government wants all the involved parties to reach an amicable solution.
Apart from these states, Punjab, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Goa and Himachal Pradesh remain undecided while Mamta Banerjee has said that the film will release in West Bengal.