"Sanjay Leela Bhansali has shot two films in Jaipur and despite his love for Rajasthan, for the safety of his crew, we have decided to leave the city post the shocking incident where miscreants damaged property and misbehaved with the crew on the shoot of Padmavati," an official statement issued on behalf of Bhansali read.
"SLB had directed the opera Padmavati to packed houses in Paris and earned worldwide praise for it. He was inspired by the beautiful and courageous queen and is making a feature film on the story.
"We clarify that there is no dream sequence or any objectionable scene between Rani Padmavati and Allauddin Khilji. We have been carefully researching and making the film. The attack on the shoot and crew was uncalled for and was extremely damaging to the image of the beautiful city of Jaipur," the document read.
Bollywood appalled as Sanjay Leela Bhansali assaulted on Padmavati set
It also mentioned how the entire crew of Padmavati was grateful to Jaipur authorities for their swift response. "We are confident that Mewar will be proud of the film made on their revered queen. We do not want to hurt any sentiments and would appreciate if the local people support us in making this film and making their queen revered by the world," the statement read.
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On Friday, the activists of Rajput organisation Karni Sena entered the Jaigarh Fort and assaulted Bhansali, slapped him and tore up his shirt. They even misbehaved with the crew and criticised the National Award-winning director for "distorting" history. They damaged cameras and other equipment, forcing Bhansali to stop shooting.
Padmavati stars Shahid Kapoor, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone in leading roles.
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