Padmaavat paean to Rajput pride

New Delhi: As protesters vandalise malls and halls, block highways and threaten to immolate themselves, it turns out that Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s much discussed Padmaavat is actually a lavishly mounted ode to Rajput pride.

In what could well be a case of sound and fury signifying nothing, the leitmotif of the Deepika Padukone-Shahid Kapoor- Ranveer Singh starrer, which has dominated headlines for months and is finally releasing on Thursday, is Rajput honour. Not what the protesters have been saying the film is about.

The 165-minute period drama is full of one-liners boosting Rajput pride as it deifies Shahid’s Maha Rawal Ratan Singh and Deepika’s Queen Padmavati. Ranveer Singh’s Allauddin Khilji is the archetypal, if savage, villain, with flowing dreadlocks and kohl-rimmed eyes.

The film was shown to journalists in Delhi and Mumbai on Tuesday.

The drama by fringe Rajput groups, now on national media with their angry protestations even before they have watched the film, appears out of place as the film sings paeans to Rajput pride.

Groups such as the Rajput Karni Sena have said the film distorts history and defames their queen Padmavati as well as Rajput pride. Historians are divided on whether she actually existed. The film does what Rajput Karni Sena stands for: strengthen the Rajputs.

Hoping to manoeuvre itself out of trouble, the film begins with a series of disclaimers, including one that it has no link with history and is based on 16th century poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi’s epic “Padmavat”.

Another disclaimer says it does not intend to hurt anyone’s sentiments.

As the film progresses, the many punchlines on Rajput valour prove that the claims made during the politically- motivated protests were baseless.

At one point, Padmavati is compared to Savitri, a mythological character who saved her husband’s life from Yamraj. There are also many references to how intelligent the queen is.