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Ajay Devgn bears brunt of Karni Sena as his UP theatre gets vandalised

Updated on: 25 January,2018 08:20 AM IST | Uttar Pradesh
Shaheen Parkar |

UP theatre, owned by Ajay Devgn, vandalised after advance booking window for Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmaavat is opened

Ajay Devgn

It's not just Sanjay Leela Bhansali and the team of Padmaavat that has drawn the ire of fringe groups protesting against the film's release. Ajay Devgn, who collaborated with Bhansali in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999), found himself at the receiving end of the Padmaavat outrage. One of the theatres, owned by Devgn, in Uttar Pradesh was vandalised by members of the Rajput Karni Sena.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Members of the fringe group stormed the multiplex in Pilkhuwa in Hapur district on Tuesday and created a ruckus, after the cinema opened the window for advance booking of the Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor starrer. Confirming the development, the theatre manager told mid-day, "As soon as they got to know that advance booking was to begin, the protesters gathered around and started chanting slogans. They smashed the glass façade of the ticket windows. They also demanded to meet the owner to ensure that the film would not be exhibited."

Still from Padmaavat

Though Devgn refused to comment, it is learnt that he is taking stock of the extent of the damage and the loss incurred. Last October, the actor had taken over four single screens in Uttar Pradesh. His aim was to take over ailing theatres and convert them into multiplexes. Considering the state's population, he felt there were not enough theatres in Uttar Pradesh.

Damaged facade of ticket window