Sanjay Leela Bhansali was slapped and heckled on the sets of his movie 'Padmavati' in Jaipur.
India's top film personalities today said they were horrified and outraged at the vicious assault on Sanjay Leela Bhansali on the sets of his film
Padmavati in Jaipur on Friday. Mr Bansali was slapped and his hair was pulled by protesters who alleged that the film distorts history. Members of the Rajput Karni Sena stormed the film's sets at the historic Jaigarh Fort and assaulted Mr Bhansali, filming the entire incident on their mobile phones. They also vandalised the equipment.
Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria has controversially said that it is “natural to be angry”.
“Anger should not be shown by breaking the law. It’s natural to be angry but people should come to the police who will then investigate. We will now probe and find out who’s at fault and who’s not,” he said.
Some of the attackers are seen on camera. But five people detained by police after the attack were let off today as no complaint was filed.
Padmavati, a historical drama, is based on the story of Queen Padmini, who famously refused to submit to Emperor Alauddin Khilji when he arrived at the Chittorgarh fort with his army. The queen killed herself along with scores of other women before he stormed the fort.
The protesters alleged that the film has love scenes between Queen Padmini and Alauddin Khilji, played by actors Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh. The allegations are unconfirmed, but the Rajput Karni Sena demands that Mr Bhansali "delete such scenes".
"We had warned the filmmaker against presenting wrong facts. When we came to know about the shooting, we gathered there and protested," said a leader of the group, Narayan Singh.
The Jaipur police had also been quoted by the Press Trust of India as saying that Mr Bhansali has decided to stop filming in the area.
Since yesterday, Bollywood has come out strongly in Mr Bhansali's support and called for strict police action.
Mr Bhansali is one of the most acclaimed filmmakers in the Indian film industry and his recent films
Bajirao Mastani and
Ram Leela were huge hits.