In another turn of events in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati saga, the UP government has sent a letter to the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry, appealing it to notify the CBFC about the volatile public sentiments against the film, in the wake of the alleged distortion of historical facts related to the rumoured ‘romantic’ sequence between Padmavati and Allaudin Khilji and her Ghoomar dance in the film.
The letter sent by principal secretary (home) Arvind Kumar has urged the I & B ministry to postpone the film’s release and supported its appeal with intelligence alerts indicating the possibility of rampant unrest against the film, slated to release across India on December 1. T
Local body elections will be held in Uttar Pradesh in three phases – on November 22, November 26 and November 29 and The State Election Commission has said that the votes will be counted on December 1. Senior officers in the home department believe that the film hitting the theatres would burden the police which will be toiling to ensure free and fair civic polls and the counting of votes on December 1.
Also Read: A Lot Will Burn, Stop Us If You Can: Karni Sena on ‘Padmavati’ Row
A senior IPS officer in charge of the security arrangements during the elections expressed his concern saying that the central forces for law and order duty were already deployed but if the film releases on the same day, they would have to divert their attention towards the security of theatres. The force would have to be vigilant at all times with anti-riot equipment.
The letter goes on to state, "Various organisations have submitted memorandums demanding censoring of scenes in which Padmavati's character has not been portrayed in a proper manner. They have also appealed to the theatre owners not to screen the film and have warned of violent protests and arson in case the film is screened at the theatres."
It illumines that movies that distort history or don’t depict facts spread hatred and threaten the law and order situation of the country. It substantiated this reasoning with the logic that the right kind of films influence society positively. The letter also states that there have been cautionary tales of films like these as precedents, in the past.
(Source: The Times of India)
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