Malaysian censor board has banned Indian movie 'Padmaavat' in the Muslim majority country as it thought it might offend followers of Islam.
Mohd Zamberi Abdul Aziz, chairman of Malaysia's National Film Censorship Board (LPF), said that the story with a Muslim antagonist might hurt the sentiments of the people in the southeast Asian country.
"The storyline of the film touches on the sensitivities of Islam. That in itself is a matter of grave concern in Malaysia, a Muslim-majority country," said Aziz, as reported by media.
The Bollywood movie is based on the mythical Indian queen Padmavati and her tales of valour.
However, Muslim country Pakistan has given 'Padmaavat' a smooth clearance for release after giving it a 'U' certification.
"'Padmaavat' has been declared fit for public exhibition in the cinema houses without any excision by Central Board of Film Censors (CBFC)," said, chairman Mobashir Hasan from Islamabad.
"CBFC isn't biased in arts, creativity, and healthy entertainment,' he added.
Padmaavat also faced extreme backlash in India. The film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali had to face the wrath of Rajput clans who claimed that the film was historically inaccurate and tarnished the image of the goddess queen.
However, the epic drama had a grand release on January 2 and since then have been getting mixed reviews. The movie has collected Rs 32 crore in just one day in India.
In North America, its Sunday collection was reported the highest ever for any Hindi film. In Australia also it got positive reviews.
Check out the day wise collection of 'Padmaavat' at the Bollywood box office:
January 28 – Rs 31 crore
January 27 – Rs 27 crore
January 26 – Rs 32 crore
January 25 – Rs 19 crore
January 24 (Paid Previews) – Rs 5 crore
Total collection – Rs 114 crore
