Meanwhile, in Mumbai, the makers of Padmaavat have approached the police for Special Task Force protection in city theatres, multiplexes
Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; January 23, 2018)

Even as the makers of Padmaavat have requested police protection in Mumbai and other places, Rani Mahendra Kanwar of Bassi, Chittorgarh, has said that Bhansali is fooling people and would have consulted the Maharana of Mewar if his intentions were honest.

With less than 48 hours to go before the paid previews of Padmaavat on January 24, the protests against Sanjay Leela Bhansali's drama only seem to be getting more intense. A day after 200 Rajput women held a protest march in Rajasthan, Rani Mahendra Kanwar of Bassi, Chittorgarh (vice-president, Jauhar Smriti Sansthan) told mid-day that distributors have assured her that the film won't be screened in the state.

"The distributors have promised us they won't showcase the film. They, too, do not support Padmaavat in any way," said Kanwar, pointing out how Rajput women have ratcheted up the pressure with memorandums to government officials to give them permission to end their lives, in the event of the film's release. "We are holding peace protest march every day. But our women have threatened to commit suicide if the movie hits screens."

The Supreme Court is slated to hear the pleas of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh today, seeking recall of its January 18 orders allowing the film to be screened across the nation. However, Kanwar said that the Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor-starrer won't find a place in Rajasthan. "We respect the law, but can't have anyone dishonouring our community." When pointed out that the makers had made the necessary modifications recommended by the Censor Board, she said, "Bhansali is saying that it's a work of fiction. Then why has he named his characters Alauddin Khilji and Rawal Ratan Singh? Bhansali is fooling people. If he had honest intentions, he would've sought permission from the Maharana of Mewar, Arvind Singh ji."

A distributor based out of Rajasthan, on the condition of anonymity, revealed that his peers have indeed decided to wash their hands off the film. "Many fringe groups are protesting against it; we don't want to burn our fingers by going against them. It's better to earn less than to incur damages," he said. While protests continued in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh yesterday, Karni Sena founder Lokendra Singh Kalvi agreed to watch the magnum opus on Bhansali's invitation before its release.

En route to Jaipur, Jeetu Verma’s car was pelted by locals while driving through a forest in Chittorgarh; the windscreen shattered and left his eye bleeding profusely
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 1, 2017)

Jeetu Verma, best remembered for his villainous turn as Jojo in the 1998 Abbas-Mastan actioner Soldier, featuring Bobby Deol in the lead, has been admitted to an eye hospital in Wadala after being attacked en route to Jaipur from Mount Abu.

His older brother, Manohar Verma, the action director of films like Madras Café, Airlift, Neerja and Mirzya, told Mirror, that Jeetu was on his way to his home town in Jaipur to attend a function. “There is a 40-km patch of forest area near Chittorgarh, which is en route. It was broad daylight and Jeetu was sitting next to the driver in the front seat. Suddenly, some locals started pelting their car. The driver picked up speed but the stones kept coming. One hit the windshield and it cracked. Jeetu’s eye was hit and bleeding profusely even as the driver raced away,” he narrates.

The 49-year-old actor-businessman, who owns over a dozen horses, runs a training academy for riders and coaches Bollywood actors for riding sequences in their films (he’s recently trained Kangana Ranaut for Rangoon besides Sushant Singh Rajput and Kriti Sanon for their upcoming film Raabta), was carried out of the car when it stopped at a toll naka on the outskirts of the forest where the cops were interrogating two other people whose cars had also been attacked that same day. Jeetu was then rushed to Udaipur airport and flown down to Mumbai.

“Meanwhile, the police assessed the vehicle and also recovered the stones that had cracked the glass and fallen into the car. But there needs to be more security. When such occurrences are happening in the region on a daily basis, it is important that stringent measures be taken immediately,” Manohar said, adding, “There was an attack on Sanjay Leela Bhansali in the same region recently (the National award-winning filmmaker was attacked by members of the Karni Sena on the sets of his upcoming historical-drama Padmavati in Jaipur), for very different reasons, but security forces and the police officers were still incompetent. Something needs to be done. Rajasthan cannot become this unsafe!”

Two days after the incident, Dr S Natarajan operated on Jeetu and confirmed that he had suffered a fractured eyebrow, had required 10 stitches and had lost retinal function. He was unconscious till Friday evening. The family still doesn’t know whether he will regain sight in his right eye. “Luckily, in these trying times we have received support from Jeetu’s close friend (actor-producer-businessman) Suniel Shetty,” Jeetu’s wife Kusum told Mirror. “Sunielji arranged for Jeetu to be transported and admitted to this hospital the moment he landed in Mumbai. Now, we hope that he recovers soon and other travellers don’t suffer such horrors in the future.”