KOCHI – In a significant legal victory for the filmmakers, the Kerala High Court on Friday lifted the interim stay on the theatrical release of The Kerala Story 2: Goes Beyond. The decision allows the controversial sequel to proceed with its screening, effectively overturning a previous order that had stalled the film’s debut.
A Division Bench comprising Justices SA Dharmadhikari and PV Balakrishnan stayed the operation of an interim order passed just a day earlier by a Single Judge bench. On Thursday, Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas had imposed a 15-day stay on the film’s release, citing concerns that the content could potentially disturb communal harmony and suggesting that the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had shown a “manifest non-application of mind” in granting it a U/A certificate.
The producers, led by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, moved a writ appeal against the stay late Thursday night, leading to a special sitting of the Division Bench. The filmmakers argued that halting the release of a certified film at the eleventh hour would result in “irreparable financial damage,” noting that the movie was scheduled to screen in approximately 1,500 theaters across India and over 300 internationally.
During the proceedings, the Division Bench questioned the feasibility of a stay based primarily on promotional clippings. The court observed that drawing definitive conclusions about the film’s impact on social harmony without a full viewing of the movie was problematic. The bench further noted that the CBFC had indeed applied its mind, as evidenced by the 16 cuts recommended before certification.
The Kerala Story 2: Goes Beyond, directed by Kamakhya Narayan Singh, explores themes of alleged forced religious conversions and deceptive marriages involving women from multiple states. While the film has faced intense criticism as “propaganda,” the makers maintain it is based on real-life research. With the High Court’s latest intervention, the film is now set to meet its audience as planned.
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