The Kerala Story 2 Controversy Explained: Why It Sparked Outrage And What Happened In The Kerala Story 1

The release of ‘The Kerala Story 2: Goes Beyond’ has once again brought the issue of the complex relationship between cinema, religion, and regional identity in India into the limelight. While the first instalment of the series was centred on the radicalisation of Kerala, the sequel seeks to take a more nationalistic approach, which has already invited legal attention from the Kerala High Court and criticism from political circles. Critics of the film have termed it communal propaganda that seeks to defame the state, while the filmmakers claim that they are only exposing a hidden reality that exists across the entire nation.

What Is The Kerala Story 2 Controversy About?

In February 2026, the Kerala High Court sent notices to the producers and the CBFC in response to petitions filed to withdraw the certification of the film. The court was concerned that the film might ignite passion and give a wrong impression about the harmony of the state. The critics are furious that the film has been named The Kerala Story 2, as the story involves other states such as West Bengal, Bihar, and Rajasthan. At a recent press conference in Delhi, the media members grilled the producers for not including a single ‘Malayali victim’ on stage while using the name of the state for branding.

Kerala Story 2: The Controversial Claim That Triggered Debate

The sequel’s primary trigger is its depiction of a ‘calculated agenda’ involving religious conversions and the radicalisation of Hindu women across India. 

A scene showing women being forcefully fed beef became a flashpoint for outrage, with social media users from Kerala roasting the trailer with beef-porotta jibes. Much like the first film’s debunked claim of 32,000 women joining ISIS, the sequel is accused of using ‘WhatsApp forwards’ rather than deep research, a sentiment echoed by the original director, Sudipto Sen, who stepped away from the sequel for this very reason.

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What Was The Kerala Story (2023) About?

The plot was about three young women from Kerala who were tricked into converting to Islam and then induced to join the extremist group ISIS. The movie was a huge commercial success, but was banned in West Bengal and had an unofficial ban in Tamil Nadu. The Supreme Court had to step in and force the producers to include a disclaimer that the movie was a fictionalised account and that there was no true information available to support the fact that 32,000 conversions had taken place.

Image credits: IMDb

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