Calling the upcoming Hindi film The Kerala Story an attempt to spread hate propaganda against the state, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan stated that it is a product of the Sangh Parivar's "lie factory." He said that legal action will be taken against all such “anti-social activities.” The trailer of the film, directed by Sudipto Sen and produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, came out four days ago, fuelling discussions on the film's propaganda. The film’s trailer seemed to blow up the number of women from Kerala who had joined the Islamic State. The Congress, which leads the Opposition in Kerala, stated two days ago that the film should not be screened. Now, CM Pinarayi has slammed the film as a Sangh Parivar agenda to humiliate the state before the world.
"Propaganda films and their otherisation of Muslims should be viewed in the context of various efforts made by the Sangh Parivar to gain an advantage in electoral politics in Kerala. Their usual tactics do not work in Kerala, so they are trying to spread their politics of division through the film based on fake stories," CM Pinarayi stated.
He also called out the film’s theme of love jihad (conspiracy theory spread by Hindu right wing extremists that Muslim men “trap” and marry Hindu women to convert them to Islam), pointing out how the concept was dismissed by investigating agencies, courts, and even the Union Ministry. "G Kishan Reddy, then Union Minister of State for Home Affairs and who is still a Union Minister, replied in Parliament that there is no such thing as love jihad. Yet in the film, this false allegation is made the main premise. The Sangh Parivar is trying to destroy the atmosphere of religious harmony in Kerala and sow poisonous seeds of communalism," the CM said.
Calling the storyline – 32,000 Malayali women convert to Islam and join the IS – a bogus one, CM Pinarayi said that the Sangh Parivar spreads myths without the support of any fact or evidence. He also said that it is not right to use freedom of expression as a way to justify those who use cinema to create division and sectarianism in the country. "Freedom of expression is not a license to communalise this country, spread lies and divide the people," he said.
The CM requested Malayalis to reject such communal and divisive movements and to stay vigilant against attempts to spread unrest in the society. Opposition leader VD Satheesan too said that it was not a question of freedom of expression but part of the Sangh Parivar agenda to create communalism in the state.