Padmavati row: Gujarat declares official ban, sends letter to theatres

The state government of Gujarat has officially banned Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati in the state and has also issued a letter to all the theatres in Gujarat. 

The letter said, “Whereas the government of Gujarat considers it necessary to do so in the public interest and to maintain the law and order situation in the state of Gujarat. Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 6 of the Gujarat Cinemas (Regulation) Act, 2004, the government of Gujarat hereby imposes a ban on Hindi feature film Padmavati produced by Viacom 18 Motion Pictures and Bhansali Productions Pvt. Ltd., within the jurisdiction of the state of Gujarat.” 

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The letter further states that the ban comes into effect from the date of notification of the letter.

Meanwhile, Vijay Rupani, chief minister of Gujarat, clarified the government’s stand on the film with a tweet, “The Government of Gujarat will not allow #Padmavati - a movie hurting sentiments of Rajputs - to get released in the State. We can’t allow our history to be distorted. We believe in freedom of speech & expression but any foul play with our great culture is not tolerated.” 

The Government of Gujarat will not allow #Padmavati - a movie hurting sentiments of Rajputs - to get released in the State. We can’t allow our history to be distorted. We believe in freedom of speech & expression but any foul play with our great culture is not tolerated.

— Vijay Rupani (@vijayrupanibjp) November 22, 2017

Earlier, the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, had declared a ban on the film. The film has features Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor in the lead roles.