Sanjay
Leela
Bhansali
believes
the
phenomenal
audience
response
to
Padmaavat
is
his
answer
to
those
who
have
been
protesting
against
the
film.
Finally
opening
up
about
the
trouble
he
faced
over
the
release
of
the
film,
the
director
said
he
was
deeply
troubled
but
instead
of
reacting
to
the
furore,
which
he
realised
would
not
make
a
difference,
he
focused
on
making
the
best
possible
film
that
he
could.
Padmaavat,
which
released
last
week
after
facing
nation-wide
protests
by
Rajput
groups
led
by
the
Karni
Sena,
has
already
become
a
blockbuster.
Bhansali,
who
calls
it
the
"most
anxious
release" of
his
life,
is
happy
that
despite
hardships,
the
film
managed
to
reach
theatres.
It's
An
Answer...
"It
is
just
an
answer
to
the
anguish
that
we
all
went
through
including
me,
the
actors
and
the
technicians.
All
of
us
were
not
being
heard
even
after
repeatedly
saying
that
there
is
nothing
wrong
in
the
film.
I
realised
that
the
best
way
of
going
ahead
and
fighting
this
is
to
make
the
film
that
is
in
my
mind,"
Bhansali
told
PTI
in
an
interview.
I
Know
I
Was
Troubled
The
director
admitted
that
he
found
it
mentally
difficult
to
cope
with
the
negativities
surrounding
the
film
but
did
not
let
it
reflect
on
the
screen.
"I
know
I
was
troubled,
I
know
I
was
distracted
but
deep
inside,
I
found
the
strength
to
make
the
film
and
not
let
this
anguish
and
disturbance
reflect
on
the
screen.
In
the
last
few
months,
I
was
constantly
correcting,
making
creative
touches
and
taking
the
film
to
the
next
level.
That's
the
answer
to
all
the
objections
that
were
based
on
rumours
and
a
certain
agenda
that
I
could
not
understand."
The
Protests
Were
Illogical
The
director
said
it
was
hard
for
him
to
fathom
the
threats
that
he
and
the
leading
lady
Deepika
Padukone
received.
"The
protests
were
illogical,
they
had
no
reasoning
and
there
was
nothing
to
be
discussed.
It
had
reached
an
obnoxious
level
with
people
sitting
with
swords
on
national
television
and
giving
death
threats...
At
The
End
Truth
Prevails
"Even
if
I
went
on
every
channel
on
television
saying
there
was
nothing
wrong
in
the
film,
they
would
not
understand
it.
No
amount
of
justification
would
have
reached
them
or
been
heard."
Bhansali
said
he
as
a
filmmaker
chose
to
focus
their
energies
on
making
it
a
once
in
a
lifetime
experience.
"There
was
no
need
for
us
to
go
around
the
town
tom-
tomming
how
honest
and
true
we
were.
At
the
end,
truth
prevails,"
he
said
thanking
the
Mumbai
police
for
providing
him
and
the
actors
with
security.
It
Is
The
Most
Anxious
Release
The
film
is
doing
well
at
the
box
office
despite
not
getting
a
release
in
four
states
and
Bhansali
says
it
only
proves
that
people
were
eager
to
watch
it.
"(The
response)
shows
that
people
had
so
much
eagerness
to
see
the
film.
I
can
only
see
love
for
the
film.
I
knew
deep
down
that
the
film
was
beautiful.
There
were
anxious
moments
right
from
finishing
it
to
getting
the
censors
and
to
getting
it
into
theatres...
It
was
a
relentless
process.
It
was
the
most
anxious
release
of
my
life
for
sure.
I
think
it
is
the
most
anxious
release
in
the
history
of
Indian
cinema.''
"Lots
of
Rajput
people
have
seen
the
film
and
they
are
saying
this
is
our
glory,
this
is
celebrating
us,
our
forefathers
and
ancestors
and
that
there
was
nothing
wrong
in
the
film,
and
what
the
noise
was
all
about?"
Bhansali
said
he
had
a
special
attachment
to
the
16th
century
poem
written
by
Malik
Muhammad
Jayasi.
"It
is
also
special
because
I
did
an
opera
in
2008
in
Paris.
It
was
living
in
my
mind
since
then
and
I
wanted
to
make
it
into
a
film,"
he
said
about
the
opera
that
he
directed,
based
on
French
composer
Albert
Roussel's
work
from
1923.
It
premiered
at
the
Theatre
Du
Chatelet
in
Paris
and
was
a
huge
success.
The
director
said
it
was
a
"rare
experience"
to
see
such
support
from
the
media,
film
fraternity
and
the
audiences.
"It
is
a
rare
experience.
I
have
never
seen
or
heard
of
any
filmmaker
go
through
all
this
and
yet
survive
and
the
film
reach
the
theatres
and
be
loved
by
the
audience.
So
all
said
and
done,
it
makes
the
film
special."
The
film
star
Deepika
as
queen
Padmavati,
Shahid
Kapoor
as
Maha
Rawal
Ratan
Singh
and
Ranveer
Singh
as
Sultan
Alauddin
Khilji.PTI