Amid ‘Padmavati’ row, Deepika pulls out of GES

Actress Deepika Padukone, who is at the centre of a row over “Padmavati”, has pulled out of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), that will have US president Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka and prime minister Narendra Modi attend the inauguration on 28 November.

A senior official of the Telangana government said on Monday that Deepika has declined to attend the event.

The actress was expected to speak at a session on ‘Hollywood to Nollywood to Bollywood: The Path to Moviemaking’ on 29 November.

“Earlier Deepika Padukona was expected to be in that session but now she has declined,” said Jayesh Ranjan, secretary, information technology, government of Telangana.

He, however, said the reason for her decision is not known.

The official was explaining to media persons that the list of speakers is yet to be finalised as there have been several changes.

Deepika’s move comes amid a raging row over “Padmavati”, which was scheduled to be released on 1 December.

Protest by Rajput groups forced the producer to defer the release.

Some leaders of BJP and right-wing groups have threatened the actress and director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Few have even announced rewards for killing them.

A leader of Akhil Bharatiya Kshatriya Mahasbha (ABKMS) has announced a reward of Rs 1 crore for “burning the actress alive”.

Deepika plays the role of a Rajput queen in the movie. Some Rajput groups allege that Bhansali has distorted history and portrayed the queen in poor light.

Being co-hosted by the US and India, the GES, with the theme ‘Women First, Prosperity for All’, will bring together 1,500 entrepreneurs, investors, and ecosystem supporters from around the world for two-and-a-half days of training and mentoring.