‘Bullsh*t propaganda’: Anurag Kashyap slams The Kerala Story 2 at Kochi Airport | WATCH

Kochi: Renowned filmmaker Anurag Kashyap issued a scathing indictment of The Kerala Story 2 on Sunday, dismissing the upcoming sequel as "bullsh*t propaganda" designed to incite communal division for financial gain. Speaking to reporters at the Kochi airport ahead of the Filmfare Awards South, the Gangs of Wasseypur director did not hold back, specifically targeting the film’s creative choices and its underlying motivations.

"Purely Calculated"

Kashyap’s most pointed criticism was directed at a specific scene in the trailer depicting the forced consumption of beef. "Who feeds beef like this? No one even feeds khichdi in this manner," Kashyap remarked. He characterised the project as blatant propaganda, alleging that the filmmakers are motivated by greed and a desire to please a specific audience for profit. The filmmaker added that the project lacks artistic merit, describing it as "bakwaas" (nonsense) and claiming its primary function is to divide the people rather than offer a nuanced narrative.

A Growing Legal and Political Firestorm

The sequel, titled The Kerala Story 2: Goes Beyond, is scheduled for a February 27 release, though its path to the box office is increasingly fraught with resistance. The Kerala High Court has already issued notices to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and the film's producers following a petition seeking to revoke its screening permit. Simultaneously, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has labeled the film a "product of the Sangh Parivar’s factory," alleging it misrepresents the state's social fabric to spread "communal venom."

While Kashyap and actor Prakash Raj have emerged as vocal critics, producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah maintains the film is a factual representation of thousands of cases currently buried in the Indian judicial system.

The Production at a Glance

Directed by Kamakhya Narayan Singh, the film shifts its focus from international recruitment to domestic "forced conversions" across multiple Indian states.

The controversy comes as a direct echo of the 2023 original, which was a massive commercial success despite being banned in several regions and widely criticised for its factual inaccuracies regarding the number of women allegedly radicalised.