The West Bengal government, led by Mamata Banerjee, announced on Monday that it has decided to ban the controversial film ‘The Kerala Story’ in order to “avoid any incident of hatred and violence.”
“This is to avoid any incidents of hatred and violence, as well as to maintain peace in the state,” CM Banerjee stated. “What is ‘The Kashmir Files?’ It is to humiliate one section of the population.” What exactly is ‘The Kerala Story?’ “It’s a distorted story,” she explained.
The Kerala Story, directed by Sudipto Sen, claims to tell the story of some women from the state who converted to Islam and were recruited by the terrorist organization ISIS.
The film has been the subject of heated online debate and criticism, with many political leaders claiming that it is a propaganda film.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had also slammed the film for being nothing more than a slew of outright lies, claiming that the film appears to peddle lies aimed at inciting communal polarization and spreading hate propaganda against the state at first glance.
The Kerala Story is making big money at the box office despite backlash over alleged factual inaccuracies. The film’s two-day collection was nearly Rs 20 crore after its release on Friday. On Sunday, it earned a whopping Rs 16 crore, according to trade analyst Taran Adarsh. Day 3 numbers are nearly 50% higher than the previous day.
Thus, The Kerala Story had a successful weekend, with a total collection of Rs 35.25 crore. According to industry tracker Sacnilk, the film had a 52.92 percent occupancy in the Hindi market. According to reports, the film is already a success. While the box office may fall slightly on weekdays due to the absence of major releases other than Hollywood’s Guardians of the Galaxy, audiences are expected to flock to The Kerala Story.
