S2.E5 – The Controversial Censorship of ‘Padmavati’

By The Jilted Indian Podcast

The cinematography was gorgeous, the men were…good looking? What? After a google search of Padmavati, we learned some troubling news stories about this movie release concerning protests, theaters set on fire, and death threats issued to the lead actress and director. We guessed this concerned misogynistic white sari fantasies and ties to Hindu Nationalism. Turns out, we were right.

Hunker down listeners, we are talking about the rise of Hindu Nationalism and Anit-Muslim sentiment and the movie ‘Padmavati;’ well ‘Padmaavat’ now. We discuss the movie itself, the character origins, how Hindu Nationalism and the Karni Sena are ruining things in India and abroad, and our thoughts and reactions to all of this as Diasporic Indians.

Note about this episode: When we originally recorded this episode, the movie was scheduled to be released on 12/1/17, but due the controversies outlined on the episode and below, it was pushed back until 1/25/17. We are trying to figure out a way for us to see the un-censored version because we are not giving our money to support BS. If you are planning on seeing this movie or you are boycotting it, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Puja would like to state for the record that she has no interest in seeing this movie anyway because the original preview looked Anti-Muslim and it pushes the notion that a woman must sacrifice her body in order for men to behave. NO THANKS.

Listen to Season 2, Episode 5: The Controversial Censorship of ‘Padmavati’:

Show Notes Here:

Here are some articles that give context to what this episode is about.

Padmavati / Padmaavat

Origins of Rani Padmavati (from wikipedia)

Padmini, also known as Padmavati, was a legendary 13th–14th century Indian queen (Rani). The earliest source to mention her is Padmavat, an epic fictionalized poem written by Malik Muhammad Jayasi in 1540 CE. The text, which features elements of fantasy, describes her story as follows: Padmavati was an exceptionally beautiful princess of the Singhal kingdom (Sri Lanka). Ratan Sen, the Rajput ruler of Chittor, heard about her beauty from a talking parrot named Hiraman. After an adventurous quest, he won her hand in marriage and brought her to Chittor. Alauddin Khalji, the Sultan of Delhi also heard about her beauty, and laid siege to Chittor to obtain her. Many events occurred during the period of the Siege, till the Fort was finally taken. Meanwhile, Ratan Sen was killed in a duel with Devpal, the king of Kumbhalner who was also enamoured with Padmavati’s beauty. Before Alauddin Khalji could capture Chittor, Padmavati and her companions committed Jauhar (self-immolation) to protect their honour. After her sacrifice, the Rajput men died fighting on the battlefield.

A little bit about old Rajput kingdom:

The Map below shows the approximate area of Rajput during the time the fictionalized Rani Padmini was written about (14th – 15th century). Here is another map showing that the Rajput Kingdom was surrounded by the Delhi Sultanate.