Thiruvananthapuram:Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday slammed the 71st National Film Awards jury decision to bestow the film ‘The Kerala Story’ with awards for best director for Sudipto Sen and best cinematographer for Prasantanu Mohapatra.The film, among the top 10 grossers last year, was marketed as a true story and was based on the premise of ‘love jihad’. It claimed that thousands of Hindu women from Kerala had been converted to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State. The filmmakers had to add two disclaimers — that the figures in the film were inauthentic, and that it was a “fictionalised” depiction of events.In a statement, Vijayan called the jury’s “choice” an insult to the proud legacy of Indian cinema, which has always upheld communal harmony and national unity.” He stated that the film, based on “falsehoods aimed at tarnishing Kerala’s image and spreading communal hatred”, reflected the Sangh Parivar’s larger agenda of using cinema as a tool for communal polarisation.”We express our strong protest against this move. Every Malayali and every believer in democracy must raise their voice against this injustice,” he said.The Chief Minister’s criticism came on a day when Malayalam cinema achieved major recognition in different categories at the 71st National Film Awards.The best Malayalam film award went to Christo Tomy’s ‘Ullozhukku’. Veteran actor Urvashi won the best supporting actress award for her role in the film, while actor Vijayaraghavan was named best supporting actor for his performance in ‘Pookalam’.
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