Archive · 2 Sep 2026
Swara Bhasker Clarifies Padmaavat Jauhar Remarks Amid Backlash
Swara Bhasker spoke about the ending of the film Padmaavat.
The scene shows many women performing jauhar, or dying to protect their honour.
A short video of Swara’s comments spread online, and some people thought she had called those women cowards.
Swara said that was not what she meant.
She said she was imagining how a rape survivor might feel while watching the scene.
She worried the scene could suggest that surviving rape is shameful or that dying would be better.
She said women have the right to live after sexual violence.
Some critics said her comments disrespected Rajput women and their traditions.
The disagreement is about how the scene should be understood and portrayed in films.
Swara Bhasker denied calling Rani Padmavati or women who performed jauhar “cowards.”
She said a viral clip mistranslated and falsely circulated remarks made at a Delhi event.
Bhasker argued that Padmaavat’s climax could make rape survivors feel ashamed for remaining alive.
She questioned whether a woman’s purity or honour should be valued above her life.
Karni Sena leader Kirti Rathore criticised Bhasker and urged her to correct her language.
- Who
- Actor Swara Bhasker, Karni Sena women’s-wing leader Kirti Rathore, and critics who objected to Bhasker’s remarks.
- What
- Bhasker clarified comments about the jauhar sequence in Padmaavat and denied calling Rani Padmavati or the women involved cowards.
- When
- Bhasker made the remarks at an event on August 31 and later posted a clarification video on Tuesday.
- Where
- The remarks were made at the Woman, Life, Freedom talk at the India International Centre in Delhi; the clarification was shared on Instagram and X.
- Why
- Bhasker said she was questioning whether the film links a woman’s honour or purity to suicide and whether rape survivors should be made to feel that surviving is shameful.
Bhasker’s interpretation
Critics’ objections
Meaning of “coward”
Bhasker’s interpretation
Bhasker said she did not call Rani Padmavati or the women who performed jauhar cowards. She said she was describing how a rape survivor might feel if a film suggested she should have died.
Critics’ objections
Critics interpreted the circulated clip as an insult to Rani Padmavati and the Rajput women depicted as performing jauhar.
Message of the climax
Bhasker’s interpretation
Bhasker argued that the sequence could suggest that a woman’s honour or physical purity is more valuable than her life, and said survivors have a right to live after rape.
Critics’ objections
Critics objected to her condemnation of a scene associated with the sacrifice and valour of Rajput women and viewed her comments as disrespectful.
Historical context and filmmaking
Bhasker’s interpretation
Bhasker questioned whether films should present suicide as the expected response to sexual violence and said the scene was problematic for contemporary survivors.
Critics’ objections
Kirti Rathore said jauhar should be understood within the circumstances of its historical period and urged Bhasker to correct her language.
- Film discussed
- Padmaavat, a 2018 Hindi period drama directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.
- Event
- Woman, Life, Freedom talk at the India International Centre in Delhi.
- Disputed claim
- A viral clip was interpreted as Bhasker calling Rani Padmavati and women who performed jauhar cowards.
- Bhasker’s clarification
- She said she meant that a rape survivor might feel like a coward for surviving, not that Padmavati or the women who performed jauhar were cowards.
- Scene criticised
- Bhasker objected to the jauhar sequence, including a close-up of a pregnant woman, and questioned its message about purity and life.
- Historical criticism
- Kirti Rathore said remarks about jauhar should respect Sanatan traditions, Rajput women’s sacrifices, and the historical circumstances of the period.
- Related references
- Bhasker referred to a recent alleged gang-rape case in Delhi and the Nirbhaya case while discussing survivors’ right and will to live.
Sources
Did Swara Bhasker Call Rani Padmavati A Coward?
Swara Bhasker issues video clarification over Padmaavat remarks amid ‘wild’ backlash: ‘Never said Rani Padmavati was a coward’
'I Never Said Rani Padmavati Was A Coward': Swara Bhasker Clarifies Jauhar Remark, Calls Out 'False' Translation Of Her Statement- VIDEO
Swara Bhasker Jauhar Comment: Karni Sena's Kirti Rathore Slams Actress, Asks Her To 'Correct' Her Language
Swara Bhaskar clarifies her remarks on jauhar: ‘I never called Padmavati a coward’
‘Abuse me, but for right thing’: Swara Bhasker says she never called Rani Padmaavati a coward
