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Padmavati row: Heres what Karan Johar and Javed Akhtar have to say about the Sanjay Leela Bhansalis film

13 Nov 2017

By now we all know that Sanjay Leela Bhansali s next is the much talked about Deepika Padukone Ranveer Singh Shahid Kapoor starrer Padmavati.In fact, since the film went on floors Padmavati has been making headlines for its run-ins with various activist groups, with the latest being a demand for the release of the film being stayed. While the makers of Padmavati are trying their level best to alleviate the issues surrounding the film, two of the film industrys most illustrious names viz. Karan Johar and Javed Akhtar have come out in support of Padmavati and its director Sanjay Leela Bhansali.Talking about the issues he as a filmmaker has faced in the past and his stance on the entire Padmavati issue, Karan Johar stated that having faced a lot of controversies before his own films release, he feels bad for Bhansali who can easily be termed as one of the best directors in the country. Further talking about Padmavati itself, Karan added that Sanjay Leela Bhansali has made a beautiful film and hopes that both the director and his film are protected by the people who understand that creativity is a form of expression. Echoing a somewhat similar sentiment, veteran lyricist and writer Javed Akhtar commented about the historical details referencing a TV show he watched wherein the presenter stated that there was a difference of 200-250 years between the rule of Allaudin Khilji and the writing of Padmavat. Going further, Akhtar added that the show also stated that there was no mention of Padmavati before Malik Muhammad Jayasi wrote the Padmavat and that a lot of history has been written about that time, with plenty of records available of that time; however there is no mention of Padmavati in them. Not stopping there, Javed Akhtar further went on to state that people should not confuse history with works of fiction. Explaining his point, Akhtar cited the example of the Hrithik Roshan Aishwarya Rai Bachchan starrer Jodhaa Akbar that was directed by Ashutosh Gowariker, pointing out that history stated that Akbar never had a wife by the name of Jodha Bai. Concluding his point, the veteran lyricist add that stories are created and people should not misinterpret films for history and history for films and that cinema should be watched and enjoyed it while interest in history should be read within serious texts that are dedicated to it. As for the film, Padmavati is slated to release on December 1.