Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmavati controversy: Sonam urges PM Modi to support film industry; director cancels shoot

The horrific incident that occurred on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmavati has left Bollywood celebrities furious. It has resulted in massive a debate and people have raised their voices in support of Bhansali.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali attacked on Padmavati sets; slapped, hair pulled by protesters [VIDEO]

Sonam Kapoor, who worked with Bhansali in Saawariya, too came out in support of the director and posted a screenshot of an old tweet by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on her Instagram page that read, "Art can't have any restrictions or limits."

In the post, Sonam requested the PM to stand up for the industry people. "A gentle reminder sir... a couple of days after republic day if we as an industry have to deal with such humiliation for expressing ourselves , it's frankly very disheartening . Please stand up for us.. #padmavati," her post read.

This is not the first time that this tweet of the PM has been used as a reminder during such situations. Earlier, during Udta Punjab fiasco, Bollywood celebrities had used the same tweet in support of the film.

For the uninitiated, the shooting of Padmavati, starring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor, was stalled on Friday, January 27, at Jaigarh Fort in Rajasthan by a group of Rajput activists, who assaulted Bhansali and vandalised the sets alleging that wrong facts are being presented in the movie.

A video of Bhansali being beaten up by protesters is also doing the rounds on the internet. Apparently, the outrage among the group kicked off due to a rumour about a dream romance sequence between Deepika's character Padmavati and Ranveer's Alauddin Khilji.

Meanwhile, Bhansali has cancelled the shoot of Padmavati in Jaipur, Rajasthan and has returned to Mumbai. Talking to India Today, the National Award winning director said, "I am (fine), you have to go through this humiliation sometimes to make a film in this country."