Kerala History Set to Recreate Kashmir Files Phenomenon: ‘Houseful Shows, Modi’s Praise’

Vipul Shah’s production The Kerala Story managed to build hype around it despite lacking a mainstream star cast. The film, starring Commando’s Adah Sharma, hit theaters Friday, May 5 amid major controversy and multiple petitions challenging its release. The history of Kerala revolves around the stories of Hindu women from Kerala who were converted to Islam and trafficked to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

The petitions claimed that the film about Kerala women joining ISIS is not based on facts and spreads hatred against the Muslim community. A section of the internet has, in fact, compared director Sudipto Sen with Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files, which also faced backlash and boycott calls upon its release for allegedly vilifying the Muslim community. of Kashmir. However, the film proved to be a box office blockbuster and lasted over two months in theaters. It was based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the valley in 1990.

Amid ongoing comparisons between the two films, we spoke to film pundits about whether The Kerala Story has the potential to follow The Kashmir Files’ box office path.

“Gone are the days when a movie only worked because of its star power. Today, content is king. Of course, exceptions are always there, but nowadays people prefer good stories. This movie has a big buzz. He should definitely pick up the pace over the weekend. I hope it works out because it will be a good thing for our industry,” producer and film expert Girish Johar told us.

Interestingly, The Kashmir Files, starring Anupam Kher, Darshan Kumar, Mithun Chakraborty and Pallavi Joshi had a slow start at the box office as it only managed to collect Rs 3.5 crores on its first day. But the film gained momentum over the weekend thanks to positive results. Word of mouth. While earning Rs 8.50 crores on day two, day 3 collections of the film were over Rs 15 crores. The film did lifetime business of Rs 340 crore gross worldwide. And, film trade analyst Taran Adarsh ​​is “pretty confident” The Kerala Story could be a “big surprise” at the box office, much like The Kashmir Files.

“The response to The Kerala Story has been outstanding,” Adarsh ​​said. “I watched the movie today and the theater was immensely full. Theater management told me the shows were going home. The Friday numbers are going to surprise everyone and the movie will definitely pick up the pace. over the weekend. It’s too soon to say the film will recreate The Kashmir Files phenomenon, but I’m confident it could.

If film analyst Atul Mohan’s prediction is to be believed, The Kerala Story Day 1 collection will break The Kashmir Files opening record. “The Kerala Story is likely to earn between Rs 6 crore and Rs 7 crore on Day 1, which is a very good figure considering it was released on limited screens,” Mohan said.

However, Mohan thinks it will be a bit difficult for The Kerala Story to top The Kashmir Files box office lifetime collections as it hasn’t received great reviews. “If you look at The Kashmir Files, the film has received decent reviews, especially from movie-going audiences. The reviews for The Kerala Story are mixed so far. The Kerala Story cannot go the way of The Kashmir Files at the box office only if moviegoers show him the same kind of support,” he added.

Additionally, The Kerala Story has found great support from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who previously called out those who oppose the Kashmir records, saying “there is a plot to discredit him”.

Speaking at a campaign rally for the BJP in Bellari in Karnataka on Friday, Prime Minister Modi said The Kerala Story revealed how terrorism was corroding Kerala. He also said Congress was defending terrorism by trying to “ban” the film.

“Terrorism has taken on a new form now. Besides using weapons and bombs, they work to make society hollow from within. The film “The Kerala Story” revealed this new face of terrorism. The film sheds light on how terrorism is corroding Kerala society. And now Congress is supporting the elements that champion terrorism in trying to ban this movie,” Modi said.

It will be interesting to see if these hugely packed theaters and Prime Minister Modi’s shoutout will help The Kerala Story become Indian cinema’s next “Kashmir Files” at the box office.

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