nFilms stars paying courtesy visits to Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray is not uncommon. But a rendezvous of this kind is rare for Bollywood. Maverick filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma has sought an appointment with Thackeray to clear his new film, Sarkar, scheduled for release next month.

The film courted controversy following reports that its characters are closely modelled on the Sena leader and his immediate family, though the film is actually Varma?s take on Francis Ford Coppolla?s gangster classic, The Godfather. In Sarkar, Amitabh Bachchan stars as a powerful gangland patriarch who controls Mumbai. The film?s fate now rests on Thackeray himself, who will see the movie at Famous Studios later this week.