Thirteen days to go and thanks to the aggressive stand the Rajput Karni Sena has taken against Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati, there is no exciting promotional countdown to the film as was witnessed for his Bajirao Mastani in 2015. Sources say the beleaguered filmmaker did have plans to release dialogue promos in the fortnight before the period drama’s December 1 release. But the Karni Sena’s threats have put paid to that ambition.
Here’s what it is believed Bhansali had in store for Bollywood aficionados looking forward to Padmavati. There were reportedly two power-packed promos featured on Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh entirely. The actors, as Maharana Ratan Singh and Allaudin Khilji respectively, were to be shown in a heated exchange of words in one promo and furiously engaged in battle in the other.

Now, it is said, Bhansali might settle for a more passive dialogue promo highlighting the romance between the Maharana and his wife, Rani Padmavati.

Industry sources are guessing Bhansali has decided to be safe rather than sorry. The more exciting the dialogue promos are, the more violent is the Karni Sena backlash likely to be. As it stands, the Mumbai Police have mounted 24 hours security at the homes and offices of Bhansali, Ranveer and Deepika. Shahid appears to have escaped the fiery Rajput caste organization’s notice. The actors have also been advised to go off the social media radar for a while.

All of this has taken a toll on Padmavati’s promos which ought to have reached a crescendo in the countdown to its release. Only Deepika, in the face of death threats, is valiantly pushing the film. Shahid, perhaps resentful that the other two actors have already walked away with the accolades, is lying low. Ranveer is just back from a brief vacation in London and the mercurial actor, his loyal fans hope, might just decide to promote the film at his own risk.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BblZJ0ChTI_/?hl=en&taken-by=deepikapadukone

Meanwhile, there are just two weekends left for the film’s release. Before the Karni Sena stepped into the picture, there was talk of Deepika and Shahid entering the Bigg Boss House one weekend and Ranveer another for an exclusive show with host Salman Khan. Will that happen? Wait and see! 

There was also the hint that all three actors would appear at the UAE’s Asiavision Movie Awards to be held at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on November 24. But online promos of this event nowhere list Ranveer, Deepika and Shahid as celebrity guests or award recipients. If Viacom 18 Motion Pictures is to believed, everybody is eagerly awaiting the “60-plus country release” of Padmavati on December 1. The producer is praying the Central Board of Film Certification watches the film soon and ends all speculation. Amen.