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Ajay Uprety
Ajay Uprety

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Theatres in UP receive threats against screening of 'Padmaavat'

padmaavat-protest-in-mathura.pti A protest against 'Padmaavat' in Mathura | PTI

As the time for the release of Padmaavat draws near, the tone of protests is becoming more intense against the screening of the film in various theatres in Uttar Pradesh.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat has been in the news for quite sometime due to ongoing protests by various cultural and political outfits against its depiction of queen Padmavati in the film. In western UP, in Noida and Mathura, members of the Karni Sena have burnt effigies of Bhansali, while in Agra, it has threatened to blow up cinema halls, which will screen Padmaavat.

The film will be released on Thursday (January 25) in various theatres of the state. Members of some rightwing organisations have been personally approaching managers of cinema halls threatening them not to show this film and threatening consequences if they didn't comply. In Agra, anonymous calls received by the manager of Sanjay Talkies threatened to blow up the theatre if it screened the movie.

Meanwhile, the founder of Karni Sena, Lokendra Singh, said, “Karni Sena will impose a public curfew in all cinema halls of the state.”

Singh had met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and urged him to take necessary steps to ban the screening of this movie in UP theatres. After the meeting he said, “We have put our views before the chief minister; now, the ball is in his court and it remains to be seen what action he takes.”

He also said when initially protests started against the film, Adityanath too had raised his voice against it. He said not only various Rajput organisations but other Hindu outfits have been protesting against it. Karni Sena has raised objections on 40 scenes in the film.

After the decision of the Supreme Court, no government can stop its screening from Thursday but the Centre and states have the option of banning it permanently.

Meanwhile, Singh confirmed that the Karni Sena has 'agreed' to see the film.

The state government has taken appropriate security measures to avoid any unpleasant incident in the state.

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