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Swara Bhasker’s 2018 open letter to Sanjay Leela Bhansali over Padmaavat’s Jauhar scene has resurfaced amid the latest controversy.
Swara Bhasker’s 2018 open letter to Sanjay Leela Bhansali over Padmaavat’s Jauhar scene has resurfaced.
Swara Bhasker is dominating all the headlines right now following her remark on the Jauhar scene featuring Deepika Padukone in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat, and this has led to a discussion about the actress’ 2018 letter to SLB resurfacing. Swara, in her letter, first congratulated Bhansali for managing to release the film despite protests and showed her admiration for his art.
The letter, published by The Wire after the film’s release, has Swara then questioning the Jauhar scene in the film. “Women have the right to live, despite being raped, sir,” she wrote and continued, “Women have the right to live, despite the death of their husbands, male ‘protectors’, ‘owners’, ‘controllers of their sexuality’.”
A part of the letter that Swara had written read, “I felt reduced to a vagina–only. I felt like all the ‘minor’ achievements that women and women’s movements have made over the years– like the right to vote, the right to own property, the right to education, equal pay for equal work, maternity leave, the Vishakha judgement, the right to adopt children…… all of it was pointless; because we were back to basics.”
Swara, while agreeing that Sati and Jauhar were part of our history, argued that they shouldn’t have been glorified in the film the way they have been. The actress even stated that, according to her, the mere disclaimer that the movie doesn’t promote Sati or Jauhar wasn’t enough because it was followed by the scene and speech by Deepika Padukone. She then criticised the particular scene where hundreds of women jump into the fire as Alauddin Khilji (Ranveer Singh) watches from the outside, as, for her, “That had the power of an anthem; seduced the audience into being awestruck and admiring of this act.” Swara further questioned, “If this is not glorification and support of Sati and Jauhar, I really do not know what is.”
While addressing the filmmaker, she shared how, according to her, he holds the power to inspire many. “Your cinema particularly is inspiring, evocative and powerful. It can move audiences to emotional highs and lows. It can influence thinking and that, sir, is why you must be responsible as to what it is you are doing and saying in your film,” she wrote.
The actress also cited several examples of rape survivors and how people were ashamed of them and said such incidents should be remembered with “shame, horror, sadness, reflection, empathy, nuance”.
“I promise to fight trolls and television commentators for your freedom to express; but I also promise to ask you questions about the art you make for public consumption,” she concluded.
September 03, 2026, 17:17 IST