The much-awaited film The Kerala Story, which was released on May 5, has received a tremendous response from the audience. The film also turned out to be one of the biggest openers of 2023. The Sudipto Sen directorial is based on the true stories of thousands of girls from Kerala who were converted to Islam and sent to Syria to become ISIS terrorists and sex slaves. Apart from the massive support, The Kerala Story also faced opposition from liberals and Islamists. Now actress Kangana Ranaut has voiced her opinion regarding the controversy around the film at ABP Majha’s Maha Katta event.
In response to a question about the film and the issue raised in the film—the conversion of non-Muslim girls to Islam and then using them as terrorists, actress Kangana Ranaut said that although she has not watched the film, she is aware that there were demands to ban the film, however, the High Court refused to ban the film. She also said that the film is based on ISIS which is a terrorist organization as noted by the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs and authorities of several other countries as well.
“See, I have not watched the film, but a lot of effort has gone into trying to ban it. I read it today; correct me if I’m wrong, but the High Court ruled that the movie can not be banned. Except for ISIS, I don’t think it depicts anyone in a bad light. If the High Court, the country’s responsible body, says so, then they are correct, and we all should respect that. The Islamic State is a terrorist organization. It’s not as if I’m labeling them terrorists; our country, the Home Ministry, and other countries have,” Kangana said.
The actress further said that the film is not attacking anyone but ISIS and that if anyone thinks the film is attacking them then they are terrorists.
“Agar aap aisa samjhte hai ki woh terrorist organisation nahi hai, zahir si baat hai phir aap bhi terrorist hi hai. I’m alluding to people who think this film is attacking them and not ISIS. If you think it is attacking you, then you are a terrorist,” Kangana opined.
Notably, The Kerala Story, directed by Sudipto Sen, also chronicles how a young Hindu girl named Shalini Unnikrishnan converted to Islam with the help of her Muslim companions, married their co-religionist and fled to an ISIS-controlled area with her spouse.
