From 'Padmaavat' to 'Laxmii': Bollywood films that changed titles to steer clear of controversy 

Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani are again working together after ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2', which has been touted as a love story. The makers on Sunday announced that they were changing their movie’s title to "Satyaprem Ki Katha'. Previously, the movie was titled 'Satyanarayan Ki Katha', but the makers decided to change the title of the movie in order to ''avoid hurting sentiments,'' which was a conscious decision.
 

Akshay Kumar's latest 'Prithviraj', backed by Yash Raj Films, had to change the title after being criticised by a fringe group based in Rajasthan called Shree Rajput Karni Sena, which filed a PIL with a demand to include Samrat before 'Prithviraj' in the title to add honour to the 12th-century Indian ruler's greatness. The makers stated that they did not mean to offend any religious sentiments and thus renamed the title to 'Samrat Prithviraj.'
 

This 2014 Hindi romantic comedy film starring Pakistan actor-singer Ali Zafar and Yami Gautam was earlier titled as 'Aman ki Aasha'. However, the makers had to change the title of the film as ‘Aman Ki Aasha’ is a social initiative that was started in Pakistan by a group called The Jang and a media outlet in India-The Times of India. The two popular publications had the rights to copy the phrase.
 

John Abraham-starrer 2013 political thriller film is centred around the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. The movie's topic was in itself sensitive and debatable. Apart from getting embroiled in several controversies, such as the negative depiction of rebels in the Sri Lankan civil war, pro-Tamil groups called for a ban on the film, etc. But amid all these scandalous developments around the movie, the creators had to rename the film's title to 'Madras Cafe' from the original 'Jaffna', the capital of Sri Lanka. The decision to change the title was taken after huge pressure from India's neighbouring countries, claiming that the film would show them in disgrace and defame them.
 

Shraddha Kapoor starrer 2017 crime-drama was previously titled 'Haseena: The Queen Of Mumbai’, but director Apoorva Lakhia announced a change in the film’s title because they felt it would be best to use Haseena Parker’s name directly since the movie was a biopic of the underworld don Dawood Ibrahim’s sister Haseena Parker and was also referred to as "Godmother of Nagpada", a place in Mumbai city.

Shahid Kapoor starred in this Prabhudheva film R...Rajkumar, who played the titular role. The film was originally titled as 'Rambo Rajkumar', but following objections from the makers of the Hollywood film franchise 'Rambo', the film had to undergo a title change as the original makers held copyrights over the word ‘Rambo’. Following the title change, Shahid’s character’s name was also changed owing to the change in title. The title of the film was then changed to 'R... Rajkumar.'
 

Filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali and controversy go arm in arm. His 2018 Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh starrer period film created a massive row in India, compelling the censor board to suggest renaming the film’s title. From Bhansali getting attacked on the sets, to Deepika receiving death threats, to huge protests by Rajput Karni sena members who threatened to cut off the actress's nose, the movie was accused of showing the Rajput women in a bad light. However, after violent protests at several places and hysteria, the movie was released in theaters. Originally, the film was titled ‘Padmaavati’ and had a superhit run at the box office.
 

Much before ‘Padmaavat’, Bhansali’s 2013 romance-musical, had faced criticism for hurting religious sentiments. Six petitions were submitted in court, including one by the Prabhu Samaj Dharmik Ram Leela Committee, that alleged that the movie "hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus as it contains sex, violence, and vulgarity," The Times of India reported. Protests erupted in several Idnan states where people accused Ram Leela of being associated with the Hindu god Lord Ram, and audiences may feel this is a religious film which is not. Therefore, the film was renamed to 'Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela.'
 

Akshay Kumar and Kiara Advan starrer ‘Laxmii’ was initially titled ‘Laxmi Bomb', but after objections from Hindu organisations, the name of the film was changed. During the film's release, the right-wing Hindu Sena wrote to Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar, stating that they will boycott the film across the country and protest because the title "shows disrespect to the goddess."

Following a collective outrage from the barber community and its organisations in India, the 2009 Irrfan Khan film was claimed to have hurt the sentiments of the community. In the film, Khan played the role of a poor barber who takes a journey to meet his childhood friend, SRK, who is a Bollywood superstar. The film was previously titled ‘Billu Barber’ and was directed by Priyadarshan.