The much-awaited film The Kerala Story has created a buzz before its scheduled release on May 5. On Tuesday, May 2, the film was screened at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) amidst protests by the leftists. The screening of The Kerala Story was organized by Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).
A tweet by ABVP JNU informing about the screening read, “Vivekananda Vichar Manch presents a premiere screening of “THE KERALA STORY” uncovering the reality of ‘Love Jihad’- forceful conversion, women trafficking & women exploitation on 2nd May 2023 at Auditorium-1, Convention Center, Jawaharlal Nehru University.”
Vivekananda Vichar Manch presents premier screening of “THE KERALA STORY” uncovering the reality of ‘Love Jihad’- forceful conversion, women trafficking & women exploitation on 2nd May 2023 at Auditorium-1, Convention Center, Jawaharlal Nehru University. #TheKeralaStory pic.twitter.com/MMZt9yxIqk
— ABVP JNU (@abvpjnu) May 1, 2023
According to the media reports, the screening of the Adah Sharma starrer was held by ABVP at 4 pm on Tuesday on the JNU premises. Meanwhile, the Student Federation of India (SFI) protested against the screening of The Kerala Story. It is notable that SFI is the student wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
SFI issued a statement and said, “The SFI-JNU unit strongly opposes and denounces the screening of this propaganda film as it would tarnish the fabric of the secular ethos.”
In a Tuesday morning tweet, SFI called The Kerala Story an RSS propaganda and claimed that the film is an attempt by the Sangh Parivar to polarise society by propagating ‘Islamophobia’.
Join the protest demo pic.twitter.com/viC1CynORd
— SFI JNU Unit (@sfijnuunit) May 2, 2023
It is notable that The Kerala Story—written and directed by Sudipto Sen is based on the true stories of thousands of girls from Kerala who were converted to Islam and sent to Syria to become ISIS terrorists and sex slaves.
Supreme Court refuses to stay the release of The Kerala Story
The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a plea seeking a stay on the release of the film The Kerala Story. A bench comprising Justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna observed that “there are various kinds of hate speeches. This movie has been cleared and certified by the board. If you want to contest the movie’s release, you should challenge the certification in High Court or an appropriate forum.”
Notably, senior advocate Kapil Sibal and advocate Nizam Pasha had told the Supreme Court bench that this film is a “worst kind of hate speech” and an “audio-visual propaganda”.
The Kerala Story gets an ‘A’ certificate
The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), commonly referred to as the censor board, has awarded the movie Kerala Story an ‘A’ certificate. CBFC has reportedly ordered the makers to delete and/or tweak ten scenes from the film that included an interview with a former Kerala Chief Minister who is supposed to be the Communist leader VS Achuthanandan.
