The actress has not been invited to the World Kannada Meet despite an initial invitation being extended to fellow Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai.
Speaking to Mid Day, a source said: "We prefer Shilpa to other Bollywood stars since she has acted in Kannada movies and connects well with the Kannada audience.
"But some writers are not comfortable with the idea and plans have been changed just to avoid controversy."
The Celebrity Big Brother winner has starred in two films translated to the Kannada language.
