Kerala BJP Chief Takes U-Turn on Mohanlal’s ‘Empuraan’ Amid ‘17 Cuts’ Censorship Order

Kerala BJP Chief Takes U-Turn: Amid raging controversies over the Malayalam film 'L2 Empuraan', newly appointed BJP Kerala unit president Rajeev Chandrasekhar Sunday said he was disappointed with the kind of moviemaking and that any film that tries to build a story by distorting the truth is doomed to fail.

Chandrasekhar, who had initially greeted the film’s release positively on Thursday, posting on Facebook, “Best wishes, Mohanlal, Prithviraj Sukumaran, and team! Look forward to watching and enjoying Empuraan one of these days!” was met with a flood of negative comments on his social media. The growing backlash led Chandrasekhar to change his stance on Sunday, stating, “I had watched Lucifer and had liked it. I had said that I would watch Empuraan as it is a sequel to Lucifer. But now, I have come to know that the makers of the movie themselves have made 17 amendments, and the movie is undergoing re-censorship.”

continued, “I understand there were topics in the movie that disturbed Mohanlal fans and other viewers. A movie should be watched as a movie — it can’t be seen as history. Any movie that distorts the truth is doomed to fail. So, will I watch this sequel to Lucifer? No. Am I disappointed by this type of moviemaking? Yes.”

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Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has condemned the 'hate campaign' launched by the Sangh Parivar against the cast and crew of the Malayalam movie Empuraan.

He expressed concern over the 'atmosphere of fear' created by right-wing groups.

In a Facebook post, the Chief Minister shared that he had watched Empuraan, which is poised to elevate the Malayalam film industry. This comes at a time when the movie's makers are facing attacks from the Sangh Parivar. He stated that the right-wing groups were angered by references in the movie to one of the worst genocides the country has witnessed.

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Pinarayi also pointed out that the producers of Empuraan had been forced to make cuts and submit the movie for re-censorship. He emphasised that it is not befitting of a democracy for artists to be attacked by fundamentalists simply for taking a stand against communalism or for portraying its horrors.

Describing attempts to destroy or ban artistic works as the 'latest manifestation of fascism,' the Chief Minister urged the state, which upholds secular and democratic values, to unite in raising its voice against such groups.

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