NEW DELHI: The Manohar Lal Khattar government on Tuesday has banned the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s controversial film Padmaavat in the state of Haryana


The health minister Anil Vij tweeted “Film Padmavati/Padmaavat banned in Haryana,”



The film had faced stiff opposition from various quarters in Haryana. Vij had earlier said that he would not allow screening of the movie in the state. He had alleged that Bhansali had wrongly presented historical facts in the movie to “defame” the image of Rani Padmavati and this had hurt the sentiments of lakhs of people.

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He further added, “Rani Padmavati is the symbol of Indian women’ pride. The character assassination of Padmavati will not be tolerated at any level,”

‘The film, mired in controversy over its plot line, had been given a go-ahead by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), which has asked the makers to change the title from ‘Padmavati’ to ‘Padmaavat’ and suggested some other modifications.

The flick, based on the legend of Rani Padmini, a 13th century Hindu Rajput queen, mentioned in Padmavat, an Avadhi poem written by Sufi poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi in 1540, has been facing protests from various groups, particularly the Shri Rajput Karni Sena, for allegedly tampering with historical facts.

Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan have already banned the film.

The film is all set for release on 25 January.

(with input from agencies)