Riteish Deshmukh’s directorial venture Raja Shivaji has been met with an overwhelming response across Maharashtra. Celebrating the film’s success, the actor hosted a party for the cast, crew, and close industry friends. A video from the event, showing Riteish dancing to a Bollywood song while wearing a T-shirt featuring Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s image, went viral.
The video drew criticism online, with some viewers claiming it was disrespectful and speculating that the actor was intoxicated.
Addressing the controversy, Riteish took to Instagram to clarify his intentions and respond to the rumors.
“To celebrate the unprecedented response given by the audience to the recently released movie Raja Shivaji, our entire team had organised a small celebration. A video of mine related to that is currently circulating on social media. As a devotee of Shivaji Maharaj (Shivpremi) and a family man who values his audience, I consider it my duty to clarify this,” he wrote.
He added, “I want to clarify that while celebrating while wearing a T-shirt featuring the image of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, I did not have the slightest intention of disrespecting him. I was using that T-shirt during the promotional campaign of the movie. On that day as well, I joined the event directly after wrapping up promotional work, which is why I missed changing the T-shirt.”
Riteish also addressed the allegations about alcohol, stating, “Additionally, regarding some claims being made about me on social media, I want to clarify that I have never consumed alcohol in my life, nor will I ever do so in the future. Therefore, any allegations in this context are completely far from the truth.”
He added that the video was filmed by a person who was not even invited to the party. “This event was organised to express gratitude towards all the artists and colleagues, both in front of and behind the camera, who worked tirelessly for three and a half years for the movie Raja Shivaji. However, if anyone's sentiments were hurt by my action, I sincerely express my regret as a Shivpremi,” he wrote.
Riteish concluded, “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is a symbol of faith, inspiration, and pride for all of us. I have immense respect, love, and loyalty for him in my heart. This sentiment is just as strong today and will remain so forever. Jai Shivray.”
Meanwhile, Raja Shivaji made history as the first Marathi film to cross Rs 120 crore globally since its release on May 1. The film features an ensemble cast including Riteish, Genelia Deshmukh, Sanjay Dutt, Abhishek Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Sachin Khedekar, Bhagyashree, Amol Gupte, Jitendra Joshi, and Mahesh Manjrekar.
