The Kerala Story: Bans, Screenings, and Controversies around it

The Kerala Story, which was released recently, has been caught up in a lot of controversies. After the release of the teaser, some allegations were made, forcing the makers to change and remove some parts of it.

After its theatrical release on May 5, the viewers are apparently divided, with some hailing the makers for showcasing the truth and others claiming it spreads hate towards a particular community.

A few states have either banned or withdrawn it from many theatres, accusing it of being disruptive and spreading propaganda. On the other hand, there are states that have made it tax-free and have been promoting the film, saying it shows the truth.

West Bengal has become the first state to ban the film. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered the Bengal Chief Secretary to not show this film in any cinema hall in the state. In Tamil Nadu, the Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners' Association has withdrawn the film from its multiplexes on Sunday. The BJP has alleged the DMK government of being behind this decision.

The Madhya Pradesh government has already made the movie tax-free in the state. Following in the footsteps of Madhya Pradesh, the Uttar Pradesh government too has made the movie tax-free. According to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's Secretariat, UP CM Yogi Adiyanath will be having a special screening of the movie where he will watch the film along with his cabinet on May 12.

The Kerala Story has not been banned or withdrawn from theatres in Kerala, and people can watch the film if they want to. However, the Kerala Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, has slammed the film, accusing it of having been deliberately made with the aim of communal polarisation and spreading hate propaganda against the state.

Written and directed by Sudipto Sen and starring Adah Sharma, 'The Kerala Story' revolves around a group of girls from Kerala who were converted to Islam and were forced to join the ISIS. According to the trailer, it claimed that 32,000 women from Kerala joined the terror group. However, the filmmakers changed the numbers to three and later even dropped the trailer.