@Evening: What The Film Screening Of The Kerala Story At JNU Felt Like

🎞️ The film faces headwind

The Kerala Story is slated for release tomorrow. Swarajya's Sharan Setty got an early look at JNU and reported back on his experience.

Context: Sudipto Sen's latest project featuring Hasee Toh Phasee star Adah Sharma is mired in what many would call needless controversy.

• The promotional material says the film depicts the plight of forced conversions, human trafficking, and sexual slavery carried out by Islamist organisations in countries like Syria and Afghanistan.

• Filmmakers, artists, and political leaders of the left and the Congress, including the likes of Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, have dubbed the movie as ‘propaganda’.

• Sen is battling the leftist establishment for making the claim that Islamists trafficked nearly 32,000 women from Kerala to Afghanistan and other places.

• Since then, a team led by advocate Kapil Sibal have knocked on the doorsteps of the Supreme Court seeking a ban on the film. 

An early preview in Delhi. The film was screened on 2 May in JNU amid threats of protest by the Students’ Federation of India (SFI).

• The hall was full, with students seated on either side of the aisle.

• The security was on alert; some of the personnel stood at the rear end of the auditorium, curiously glancing at the screen.

• Tensions were high as the ABVP and SFI cadres stood attentively, watching the movie.

• "JNU is the metaphor of the concept of India. Metaphor of an argumentative India. Having the first official screening of the film there, we honoured our film," director Sen told Swarajya on why the film was screened at JNU.

• Glad to say, no violence was reported from the venue.

Uphill battle for the film and filmmaker. Some prominent personalities are speaking out against the movie.

• ‘Fact check’ websites have called out Sen for using ‘flawed math, imaginary figures’ in his portrayal of the issue.

• Shashi Tharoor, Thiruvananthapuram’s Lok Sabha representative, has defended the filmmaker's right to freedom of expression, but also expressed his support for voices critical of the movie.

• After the controversy, the film’s description has changed from 'the story of 32,000 women' to that of 'three women'.

• A narrative war is in play in Kerala, with the establishment undermining social issues like love jihad.

Verdict on the film. The commercial success of The Kashmir Files has encouraged filmmakers to take up subjects once considered taboo by the Indian film fraternity.

• Whether the movie will resonate with a pan-India audience is, however, a question that will be answered by the audience... very soon.