Padmavati Row: Karni Sena Chief Threatens To 'Chop Off' Deepika Padukone's Nose

With just over two weeks left for the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmavati, there seems to be no end to the controversies surrounding the film. After Rajput fringe outfits spread their demonstrations to several parts of the country including Bengaluru, Haryana and Kota, Karni Sena chief Lokendera Singh Kalvi has threatened Deepika Padukone of physical harm.

While addressing a press conference on the ongoing Padmavati row, Kalvi has threatened to chop off actor Deepika Padukone's nose if she continues to defend the film.

“Don’t provoke us. We’ll cut off her nose as soorpanaka’s nose was cut off," he said.

He also raised questions on Padmavati's funding and alleged that the fugitive don Dawood Ibrahim has funded the film.

Kalvi also added that while they have already written to the censor board, but if the need be, the Karni Sena members can die fighting against the film.

"We have written to censor board and have also met Venkaiah Naidu and Rajyavardhan Rathore over the matter. Bhansali had promised that he would take our concerns into consideration but he did not. We will conduct a Bharat Bandh against the film's release and if it releases, well, it's an issue that we are ready to die for," he said.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday wrote to the Union Secretary of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting requesting them to ensure that the prospects of public outrage and unrest over the Bollywood film Padmavati are considered owing to alleged twisting of historical facts before certification of the film by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

In the letter written by the state home department, the I&B official was asked to also ensure that the public view and dissent on the matter was taken into consideration before the film is certified.

While Bhansali has rebuffed the presence of a dream sequence between Rani Padmavati and Allaudin Khilji, protesters believe that the upcoming film "distorts" historical facts and shows the Rajput queen and her community in poor light.

(With inputs from IANS).