Earlier, we reported about Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan coming down hard on The Kerala Story 2 Goes Beyond, calling out the film's alleged propaganda against the state and its secular values. In a long social media post, he called it "a film specifically designed to sow seeds of hatred and insult the state’s secular tradition". According to him, the news about the existence of a sequel to The Kerala Story "must be viewed with extreme gravity". The CM also questioned how the censorship clearance has been given to The Kerala Story 2 when even the Spanish film Beef did not receive permission to be screened at IFFK simply because of its title.
Speaking of which, one scene from the trailer for the film shows a woman being forced to consume beef even as she resists it, saying, "I would rather starve to death". Netizens have been ridiculing the scene for its insinuation that beef consumption is a taboo in Kerala.
Clips from an interview where actor Nikhila Vimal said that Kerala does not restrict beef consumption are also doing the rounds on the internet. At the time, Nikhila opposed the proposition of restriction against beef consumption. She said that if it should be banned, consumption of any form of meat should also face similar restrictions. "Why the exemption for beef alone?" the actor rhetorically said at the time.
The sentiments of netizens against the 'beef scene' in The Kerala Story 2 echo those of actor Nikhila. Meanwhile, beyond the memes and trolls, many netizens from within and outside of the state are also seriously questioning the film and its agenda against Kerala, especially at a time when it has been praised for an infant donating her organs to those in need. "This is the Real Kerala Story," taglines are trending online even as the makers of the franchise continue to propagate negative ideas about the state and its people.
