The development comes a day after the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government banned the movie on Monday. The development comes a day after the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government banned the movie on Monday. The development comes a day after the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government banned the movie on Monday. The Kerala Story update: Uttar Pradesh government will declare the Adah Sharma-starrer contentious film The Kerala Story tax free. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is also expected to attend the special screening of the film with Cabinet ministers. CM Yogi tweeted in Hindi: “The Kerala Story will be made tax-free in Uttar Pradesh”.
UP Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak said the state government will make the contentious Sudipto Sen-directorial tax free if there is a proposal. He also said that everybody should watch the film.
Pathak was quoted as saying by news agency PTI: “Everyone should see The Kerala Story. I would appeal to all my sisters that they should watch (the film) and understand how atrocities are committed on sisters in a state”.
With this, Uttar Pradesh joins states like Madhya Pradesh and Assam. While the Madhya Pradesh government declared the film tax free, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma came out in support of the movie. He said during a rally in Karnataka: “When BBC made a false film on PM Modi, Congress told us not to ban it and today, when The Kerala Story is about to release, Congress is saying ban it. This is appeasement politics”.
The development comes a day after the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government banned the movie on Monday. Banerjee said: “This (ban on movie) is to avoid any incident of hatred and violence, and to maintain peace in the state”. She further said: “What is The Kashmir Files? It is to humiliate one section. What is The Kerala Story? It is a distorted story”.
Multiplexes in Tamil Nadu have also cancelled the film’s screenings citing law and order issues and poor audience response. Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners Association President Tiruppur M Subramaniam said: “The film has been taken out of almost all theatres. The film was screened only in the cities. Since it is a Hindi film and has no recognisable faces, it will not have patronage”.
On the day of its release, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the movie brings out terror conspiracies. The Prime Minister also used it to attack the Congress while campaigning for the upcoming Karnataka Assembly Elections 2023.
PM Modi said: “The Kerala Story film is based on a terror conspiracy and is based on what happens in that beautiful state. It shows the ugly truth of terrorism and exposes terrorists’ design. Congress is opposing the film made on terrorism and standing with terror tendencies. Congress has shielded terrorism for the vote bank”.
The Kerala Story was released in cinemas across India on May 5. The film covers the alleged conversion of three young women to Islam in Kerala due to which they get inducted into the militant Islamist outfit ISIS. The film features Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Sonia Balani and Siddhi Idnani in lead roles.
The film has fared decently well at the box office as it collected Rs 8.03 crore on its opening day, Rs 11.22 crore on day 2, and Rs 16 crore on day 3. The film is likely to have raked in Rs 10.5 crore on its day 4, as per industry tracker Sacnilk.