Karni Sena calls for a nationwide 'public curfew' in cinema halls

Shri Rajput Karni Sena has given a call for a nation-wide "public curfew in cinema halls" to block the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's film Padmavat.

At a press conference here on Wednesday, the outfit's founder Lokendra Singh Kalvi expressed his distrust with the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) which cleared the film with UA certificate along with recommendations for "some cuts" on December 30.

He claimed that that all three "eminent persons" who recently watched the movie on a request from the CBFC have opined that it's public screening should not be allowed "at all," accusing the board's chief Prasoon Joshi of "trying to clear the film under a conspiracy" ignoring their suggestion.

Kalvi demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi must intervene on the issue and ban the release of the film, saying as many as eight states including Rajasthan have already banned screening of the film and many more state governments are expected to follow the suit.

"I am confident that governments of Karnataka and Telangana will also issue ban orders very soon. I demand that our Prime Minister Narendra Modi also ban the film under Section 6 of the Cinematograph Act," he said.

Kalvi,  who was here to meet Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal seeking his support, reiterated his outfit's vow that it will not allow public screening of Padmavat in cinema halls "at any cost" unless the "entire plot of the story along with references of Padmavati, Allauddin Khilji and others is completely removed from it."

"You (producers) keep fixing date of the release of the movie as January 25, 2018 or 2025, it doesn't matter. I want to make it clear that film will not be allowed to release in this country at any cost. You (producers) can get it released in Pakistan or Afghanistan," he said.

Noted art historian Chandra Mani Singh, a senior faculty from the Indira Gandhi National Open University Kapil Kumar and Arvind Singh from the Mewar royal family in Rajasthan watched the film at a special screening organised by the CBFC last month.

"All of them, after watching the film, said it should not be cleared for release in the country," Karni Sena's founder  claimed.

Kalvi held  Bhansali "responsible" for a "nation-wide protest" against his film, promising that Karni Sena would teach him "a lesson" by causing him a huge financial loss.

"We will hit him with a silver shoe this time which means we will cause him huge financial loss. People across the country understand our sentiments and I appeal to them to ensure clamping of a public curfew in cinema halls to block the release of the film on Padmavati," he said.