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India: National Award for Kerala Story 'grave insult' to state, says CM Pinarayi Vijayan
The film won the Best Director and Best Cinematography awards at the 71st National Film Awards, announced on Friday
- PUBLISHED: Fri 1 Aug 2025, 11:01 PM
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has criticised the Indian government's decision to honour the movie, Kerala Story. The film won the Best Director and Best Cinematography awards at the 71st National Film Awards, announced on Friday, August 1.
The 2023 release, directed by Sudipto Sen and produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, explores alleged cases of forced religious conversion in Kerala for ISIS recruitment.
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Vijayan accused the film of spreading misinformation and said that honouring such a film is a grave insult to the state.
Without naming the film, he posted on X, "By honouring a film that spreads blatant misinformation with the clear intent of tarnishing Kerala’s image and sowing seeds of communal hatred, the jury of the #NationalFilmAwards has lent legitimacy to a narrative rooted in the divisive ideology of the Sangh Parivar."
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"Kerala, a land that has always stood as a beacon of harmony and resistance against communal forces, has been gravely insulted by this decision. It is not just Malayalis, but everyone who believes in democracy, must raise their voice in defence of truth and the constitutional values we hold dear," he added.
Kerala Story, starring Adah Sharma in the lead, drew criticism from the CPI(M)-led Kerala government during its release for its plot showing a group of women forcefully converted by the Islamic State.
