Hyderabad: Manoj Tiwari, an actor and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, attacked legendary actor Naseeruddin Shah for his critique of The Kerala Story. Naseeruddin in an interview dubbed the film's box office triumph a "dangerous trend." Reacting to it, Manoj Tiwari stated that Naseeruddin Shah is a talented performer, but his "intent is not right."
The Kerala Story is written and directed by Sudipto Sen and stars Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Idnani, and Sonia Balani in the key roles. The movie hit theatres on May 5, 2023. Produced by Vipul Shah, it has become one of the year's highest-grossing pictures. Manoj Tiwari, an actor-turned-politician, in a recent interview, said that films like The Kerala Story are based on true events.
Reacting strongly to Shah's criticism of the film, the BJP MP said, "He is a good actor, but Naseeruddin ki niyat achi nahi hai." Manoj Tiwari continued in Hindi, saying, "I say this with a sorrowful heart. When films depicted a man sitting in a shop making insults about a woman, Naseer sahab (Naseeruddin) had nothing to say. As an Indian and as a human being, the way he has identified himself is not good."
In an earlier interview, Naseeruddin Shah stated, "Worthwhile films like Bheed, Afwaah, Faraaz, all three collapsed. Nobody went to watch them, but people are going to see The Kerala Story, which I haven't seen and won't be seeing since I've read enough about it."
"On the one hand, it is undeniably a dangerous trend," he continued, saying, "We appear to be moving in the direction of Nazi Germany, when filmmakers were co-opted, or attempted to be co-opted, by the supreme leader to make films glorifying him and what he has done for the countrymen while slamming the Jewish population."
Prior to this, actor Kamal Haasan spoke about The Kerala Story. The actor-politician has labelled Sudipto Sen's film a "propaganda film." He was in Abu Dhabi for an awards ceremony when he addressed the media. During the interview, he stated that it was not enough for the filmmakers to include a 'true story' at the bottom of the film's title and expect anyone to believe it.
