Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi producer clarifies Sonu Sood's withdrawal was after 'mutual consent'

Sonu Sood has reportedly staged a walkout from the sets of Kangana Ranaut-starrer lavish historical epic Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi , reports BollywoodHungama. The reason cited for the decision is Ranaut’s high-handed attitude on set. [caption id=“attachment_4798131” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Sonu Sood as Sada in Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi. Instagram /@mw_india[/caption] The actress, who has apparently taken over the directorial reigns from Krish, has had showdowns with several members, but Sood’s episode escalated and finally compelled the actor to withdraw from the project, says the report. The same report stated that he had informed the film’s producers of his decision. Sonu had an objection to Kangana directing the film, without having any real qualification to do so. Once Kangana boarded the project to helm it, she allegedly demanded that Sood ’s portions be edited to a shorter version. That is what triggered the actor to take the decision to leave. However, the producers of the film have issued an official statement quashing the rumours and claiming that Sood backed out due to date unavailability. “I  have utmost respect and love for Sonu and he is like family to us. With a heavy heart we have mutually decided to part ways due to his date unavailability. He is a thorough  professional and have his dates committed to Simmba which is also releasing in December.  I would love to work with him in the future again,” said producer Kamal Jain. Jain also added that the post-production and VFX work for the film are going on in full swing and that the team is aiming for the scheduled release of 25 January, 2019.