Superstar Mohanlal issued a statement on Sunday, March 30, days after the release of ‘L2: Empuraan’, addressing outrage surrounding the film’s depiction of Hindus and the Godhra riots.
The actor acknowledged that certain aspects of the film had caused distress to some of his fans and assured that the team had decided to remove such references.
“I have come to know that some political and social themes that were included in the unveiling of Empuran, the second part of the Lucifer franchise, have caused considerable distress among many of my loved ones,” the actor wrote in a Facebook post.
“As an artist, it is my duty to ensure that none of my films promote hatred towards any political movement, ideology, or religious group. Therefore, both I and the Empuran team express our sincere regret for the distress caused to my dear ones, and we all take responsibility for it, with the realization that such issues must be removed from the film,” he wrote in Malayalam.
The actor reiterated his gratitude towards his audience, saying, “For the past four decades, it is you, the audience, who have been a part of my cinematic journey. Your love and trust are my strength. I believe there is no Mohanlal beyond that.”
The statement comes in response to growing controversy from Hindu groups over the depiction of the community in the movie. Actor-filmmaker Prithviraj Sukumaran, who has directed the movie, has shared Mohanlal’s Facebook post.
Meanwhile, the production team of ‘Empuraan’ has announced that the film will undergo revisions. According to reports, 17 scenes, including those featuring riot sequences and depictions of violence against women, will be edited out.
Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BYJM) state general secretary K Ganesh also joined the debate, calling for an investigation into the alleged “foreign connections” of Empuraan director and actor, Prithviraj Sukumaran.
Ganesh questioned the director’s contacts during his stay in Jordan while filming ‘Aadujeevitham’, suggesting that the director’s past projects, including ‘Kuruthi’ and ‘Jana Gana Mana’, contained “anti-national” content.
What was Empuraan controversy
South Indian actor Mohanlal starrer ‘L2:Empuraan’ is facing major backlash for the misportrayal of the 2002 Gujarat riots. The much-anticipated movie has shown Hindus as insensitive and merciless, using the context of the Godhra riots.
The movie, which is a sequel to Lucifer (2019), portrayed the events after the Godhra riots in a manner that pushes an anti-Hindu narrative. Among other controversial scenes, there is reportedly a scene in the movie where a Muslim family is shown as being brutally killed by Hindu right-wing extremists. Sukumaran, playing second fiddle to Mohanlal’s character in the movie, portrayed a character named Zayed Masood. The controversial scenes relating to the Godhra riots appear in the introduction of the background of Sukumaran’s character. Besides, the movie shows how the then-ruling party, which was the BJP led by erstwhile Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, misused the central agencies during the riots.
The truth of the Godhra riots
The Godhra riots are perhaps among the most misrepresented and the most politicised events in the country’s history of communal riots, and the Mohanlal-film has done the same. While the riots have been used by politicians, media houses and left liberals over the years to paint an anti-Hindu narrative, the carnage that preceded the riots, in which 59 karsevaks were charred to death in a train coach set on fire by a Muslim mob, has never found mention in that narrative.
On 27th February 2002, the Sabarmati Express, after running four hours late, reached Godhra station by 7:40 am. at about 3:30 am. Coach S6 of the train was carrying 59 karsevaks returning from the Ramjanmabhoomi site in Ayodhya. Within minutes of the train arriving at the station, a mob of around 2000 Muslims from the nearby Muslim-dominated area of Signal Falia surrounded the coach carrying karsevaks and set it on fire. All the karsevaks inside the coach, including 25 women and 15 children, were burnt alive.
(With inputs from ANI)
