Producers Guild of India has issued a statement objecting the ban on ‘The Kerala Story’. See the full statement here.
On Monday, while announcing the ban on the film 'The Kerala Story' in the state, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that certain scenes in the film can affect peace and harmony in the state. "So, we have decided to ban its screening everywhere in the state. The decision has been taken to maintain peace and harmony," the Chief Minister told the media.
Now amid calls for a ban on Sudipto Sen's film ‘The Kerala Story’, the Producers Guild of India has issued an official statement, thereby raising a 'strong objection' to the ban.
“The Producers Guild of India is distressed by, and would like to record its strong objection to, state-enforced bans on ‘The Kerala Story’. As emphasised by us on several occasions in the past, film releases are regulated by CBFC and any film that complies with this statutory requirement should face no further hurdles in having the paying public decide on its fate. Of course, the audience can choose to watch or ignore any film but that is a choice that should be theirs to make, not one that is imposed on them by any party other than CBFC,” the statement read as.
It added, “We call upon all the relevant authorities to urgently address this all-too-frequent phenomenon of films being denied their right to unfettered, nation-wide exhibition despite having duly complied with regulatory requirements.”
Meanwhile, speaking about the ban, film's director Sudipto Sen told news agency ANI that the decision was "politically motivated".
The film stars Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Idnani and Sonia Balani in the lead roles, and the initial trailer depicted how 32,000 women from Kerala had gone missing and joined the terrorist group ISIS. But when it triggered a heated political debate, the figure in the trailer was withdrawn due to the protests.
Recently, veteran actors Shabana Azmi and Anupam Kher showed support for the film.