Shabana Azmi: Those seeking to ban The Kerala Story as wrong as those who wanted to ban Laal Singh Chaddha

In Tamil Nadu, multiplexes have decided to stop the screening of Sudipto Sen's directorial
Shabana Azmi: Those seeking to ban The Kerala Story as wrong as those who wanted to ban Laal Singh Chaddha

Veteran actor Shabana Azmi took to Twitter on Monday to speak against people who are seeking to ban The Kerala Story which has recently been in the middle of a controversy. In Tamil Nadu, multiplexes have decided to stop the screening of Sudipto Sen's directorial, noting the poor performance and law and order situation. The Kerala High Court, on the other hand, recently refused to issue a stay order on the release of the film.

Comparing the call for the ban with calls to boycott Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha, Azmi wrote, “Those who speak of banning The Kerala Story are as wrong as those who wanted to ban Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaadha. Once a film has been passed by the Central Board of Film Certification nobody has the right to become an extra-constitutional authority.”

The Kerala Story is about a group of women from Kerala who are brainwashed to join Islam and ultimately the terrorist group ISIS in Syria. The film has been facing a widespread backlash since the release of the trailer, which claimed an arbitrary number (32,000) of Kerala women were converted to Islam, and taken to ISIS-ruled Syria. However, after intense criticism asking the makers to prove the veracity, the claim was reduced to just 3 women.

Following the release of the film's trailer, a petition was also filed at the Supreme Court seeking a stay on its release on the grounds of 'hate speech' and 'audio-visual propaganda', But the SC didn't entertain the request, and the film got released on May 5. 

Produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, The Kerala Story stars Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Sonia Balani and Siddhi Idnani, among others. 

Related Stories

No stories found.
Cinema Express
www.cinemaexpress.com