- Swara Bhasker criticised Padmaavat’s jauhar scene
- She said the film’s message could harm women in a rape-epidemic society like India
- Swara recalled being upset by a shot implying a female foetus does not deserve to be born
Eight years after Swara Bhasker wrote an open letter to Sanjay Leela Bhansali criticising the alleged glorification of jauhar and sati in Padmaavat, the actor has once again spoken about the controversial scene in the Deepika Padukone-led film.
Her latest remarks have triggered widespread backlash on social media, prompting Swara to respond to those criticising her views.
Reacting to the backlash, Swara took to X and wrote, "It is WILD that so many people are triggered (women included) by the basic idea that rape survivors have a right to life after rape!!!"
Swara had originally penned her open letter to Bhansali in 2018, shortly after watching Padmaavat. At the time, her letter divided the Internet and the film industry.
What Did Swara Say At The Delhi Event?
At a recent event in Delhi, the actor revisited the letter and explained what had made her so "mad" about the jauhar sequence in the film. In a video that is going viral on social media, Swara is heard discussing the scene featuring Deepika Padukone as Rani Padmavati, who performs jauhar along with hundreds of Rajput women.
Swara said, "I'm watching this and it shows all these 800 women committing jauhar which is the story. Watching it I was thinking that 'God forbid, I was a rape survivor, what is this film telling me? I would feel like a coward. That I didn't kill myself to save my 'honour'."
She then questioned the message such a portrayal could send to survivors of sexual violence. She said, "Is that what you want to tell women in a society like ours where I feel like there's any way a rape epidemic. Is that what we want to tell our survivors that you don't deserve to live? That if you had actually been brave and honourable women, you would have killed yourself? Are we saying that rape is the end of a woman's life?"
Swara's comments come against the backdrop of her long-standing criticism of the film's depiction of jauhar and sati. In her 2018 open letter, she had argued that women should not be made to feel that death is preferable to surviving sexual violence.
Swara Bhasker Recalls What Made Her 'So Mad' About Padmaavat
Speaking about Padmaavat at the recent event, Swara said the film had several elements that she found "just so problematic". She specifically recalled a shot involving a pregnant woman, which she said particularly upset her.
"There was like one shot that made me so mad. I was like, 'Chhee!' There is a close-up of a pregnant woman's belly and she's going... So, you're saying that a foetus that might be female doesn't deserve to be born because she might be raped by a Muslim ruler? I was so mad and then I came out and I was like, 'This is terrible'," she recounted.
The actor also addressed the perception that she reacts impulsively when expressing her views. Swara revealed that she did not immediately write her open letter after watching the film. Instead, she waited for five days before putting her thoughts down.
"Normally people think I do these things (expressing an opinion) in a rage but I waited for five days. I was like 'Let me check if I still feel like this. At the end of five days I wrote this letter," she added.
In the 2018 letter, published on The Wire, Swara had written that she "felt reduced to a vagina" after watching Padmaavat. She also criticised Bhansali for what she described as the glorification of jauhar and sati.
"Women have the right to live despite being raped, sir. Women have the right to live, despite the death of their husbands, male 'protectors', 'owners', 'controllers of their sexuality'... whatever you understand the men to be," she had written.
What Was The Padmaavat Controversy About?
Padmaavat, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, stars Deepika Padukone as Padmavati, Shahid Kapoor as Rawal Ratan Singh, and Ranveer Singh as Alauddin Khilji.
The story depicts Alauddin Khilji's attempt to conquer Chittor. After he breaches the fort, Rani Padmavati performs jauhar along with hundreds of Rajput women.
The film's depiction of history, particularly its portrayal of jauhar, became a subject of intense debate.
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