Richa Chadha says she gave her nod to Madam Chief Minister as it is an empowering tale of a woman who battles casteism and sexism to carve her place in the world of politics. However, the makers got off on the wrong foot - the film’s first poster, which saw Chadha holding a broom, was widely criticised for stereotyping the Dalit community, and using the word ‘untouchable’ in the text. Soon, the team retracted the objectionable poster.

Though she had issued an apology on January 15, the actor, talking to mid-day, says the criticism was "premature". "I understand their hatred [towards the poster], but I think the criticism was premature; the filmmakers changed the poster the very next day, as soon as they realised there has been a mistake from their end. This is a learning experience for us. Sometimes, I feel people are harder on women and actors, and I will maintain it in this case because [the umbrage] was misdirected. I was surprised that I was attacked because actors don’t control the making of posters."