In positive news for the filmmakers of The Kerala Story and overseas audiences, the film which was unexpectedly pulled from theatres in the United Kingdom before its scheduled premiere on May 12, was given the green light to screen by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC). Now, it will be screened from 19 May in the country.
In a statement to the media on Wednesday, producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah said that the audience’s support is the solution to the alleged discrediting propaganda.
“Britain’s censor certification agency had to give the certificate yesterday. There was a lot of public pressure there. Some political elements were trying to stop the film illegally. Whatever was happening was political. The British censor board had to give in before the public pressure. The film is being screened in the UK today,” he stated.
#WATCH | Mumbai: #TheKeralaStory film's producer Vipul Shah says, "Britain's censor certification agency had to give the certificate yesterday. There was a lot of public pressure there. Some political elements were trying to stop the film illegally…Whatever was happening was… pic.twitter.com/Yw9az2OlKL
— ANI (@ANI) May 17, 2023
“We have met thousands of girls ourselves, so there is no point in 32,000 vs. 3 conversions. We have based our film around three girls; that is why the number 3 is being said, and it has nothing to do with what is happening in Kerala. Through these 3 girls, we have brought you the stories of thousands of girls,” the producer responded on the veracity of the statistics.
He remarked, “And we were disappointed when some media people supported them and tried to discredit our film. So many girls’ lives are ruined, but instead of supporting them, they tried to defame the film and prove it wrong.”
“They said 7,000, and very soon we will come up with more statistics and expose everything, including 32,000 girls. We want to request that you please help these girls get justice,” he urged.
He praised the appreciation that the audience had shown for The Kerala Story and asserted that the support is confirmation that the movie is not, as some have claimed, ‘propaganda.’
The press conference of The Kerala Story in Mumbai was attended by the director Sudipto Sen and the lead cast of the movie, Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Idnani, and Sonia Balani.
“The way the journey started and the point it reached, it’s a long one. But the journey is still not over. The audience watched the movie, and I feel they have given answers to all those tags labelled against the movie. Our commitment didn’t end with the making of the movie. We are also committed to the girls, who were trapped in this vicious net,” he noted.
Director Sudipto Sen tweeted ‘You won. Terrorism lost’ after the movie was cleared to screen in the UK.
Congratulations #GreatBritain . You won. Terrorism lost.
— Sudipto SEN (@sudiptoSENtlm) May 16, 2023
Shall wait for your reaction.
Oh… now British people shall watch the biggest revolution against terror… #TheKeralaStory.@adah_sharma @SiddhiIdnani pic.twitter.com/cQdpma95rB
Last week, all of the scheduled screenings of The Kerala Story were cancelled because the BBFC had not assigned the movie an age rating. However, it has now rated the movie as ’18.’ It has also given detailed content advice to viewers watching the film.
Notably, under the ‘Discrimination’ rating, the BBFC has written, “The film presents a partial and unbalanced view of Islam which focuses on radical Islamist characters and motivations to the exclusion of more moderate and mainstream forms of the faith. There are regular scenes of discrimination on the basis of religion and gender. A woman spits on her dying father for not sharing her faith.”
Amidst all the controversy and objections The Kerala Story has performed phenomenally well at the box office. It has made more than 165 crores in its second week, exceeding all forecasts and will shortly surpass the 200-crore threshold.
Watch the entire press conference below:
It is notable that the topic of the movie The Kerala Story, which is the story of women who ended up becoming ISIS terrorists or wives of ISIS terrorists, is very much relevant to the UK. Several British women went on to become ‘ISIS brides’ in Syria when the terror group ISIS had captured the country, and the UK government has refused their appeal to return to the country. The UK has revoked the citizenship of Shamima Begum, one of the most famous ISIS brides, who is currently staying at the Al-Hawl refugee camp in Northern Syria, and higher court of UK has rejected her appeal against the govt decision.
