Bollywood actor Ranvir Shorey has reacted to Swara Bhasker's remarks on Padmaavat's Jauhar scene. She called the sequence 'problematic', resulting into a significant backlash on social media.
Ranvir Shorey calls Swara Bhasker's Jauhar remarks 'shameless'
Ranvir Shorey wrote on X, "I still don’t get it! Comparing Jauhar (suicide by fire in defiance of inevitable and endless rape, violence and even necrophilia!) to rape survivors? Where’s the connection? They’re two completely different sets! The only intention can be to malign one group of people while trying to whitewash the other! Utterly shameless!"
I still don’t get it! Comparing Jauhar (suicide by fire in defiance of inevitable and endless rape, violence and even necrophilia!) to rape survivors? Where’s the connection? They’re two completely different sets! The only intention can be to malign one group of people while…
— Ranvir Shorey (@RanvirShorey) September 2, 2026
What did Swara Bhasker say about Padmaavat's Jauhar sequence?
While speaking at the Woman Life Freedom talk at the India International Centre in Delhi, Swara Bhasker said, "I was watching it and I thought that if God forbid, I was a rape survivor, what is this film telling me? I would feel like a coward that I didn’t commit suicide to save my honour."
She further added, "Is that what you want to tell in a society like ours where I feel like anyway there is a rape epidemic. Is this what we want to tell our survivors that they don’t deserve to live, that if you actually would have be a honourable and brave women, you would have killed yourself. Are we saying that rape is end of a woman’s life? This scene was so problematic."
Bhasker continued that she shouted 'chii' loudly at a particular scene featuring a pregnant lady's belly performing jauhar. "So, you are telling me that fetus, which might be a female, doesn’t deserve to be born because she might be raped by a Muslim ruler. I was so mad. I waited for five days to check if I still feel like that, and after five days, I wrote a letter," she said.
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Actor Swara Bhasker defends her remarks against Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmaavat
— Brutal Truth (@sarkarstix) September 1, 2026
According to Bhasker, Hindu women who committed jauhar or suicide were "COWARDS" because they chose to die over the prospect of leading their lives as concubines of Muslim invaders.…
Swara Bhasker's response to backlash
Soon after witnessing backlash on social media, Swara took to her Instagram handle and issued a clarification. She said, "My video clip has gone viral—it's being wrongly and falsely translated! I absolutely did not say that Queen Padmavati or any sati was a coward. It’s shameful that media channels and people are repeatedly leveling false accusations to incite people."
What is Padmaavat's Jauhar scene about?
To protect their freedom and dignity from being captured and enslaved by the invading forces, the women choose to walk into a massive fire.
FAQs
How did Padmavat writer respond to Swara Bhasker's remarks?
Screenwriter Prakash Kapadia defended the scene, stating that historical events and practices cannot be altered to fit modern-day sensibilities.
What specific visual shot in Jauhar scene did Swara Bhasker call out?
Bhasker expressed strong objection to a close-up shot focusing on a pregnant woman's belly as she walked toward the fire.
