The Kerala High Court on Friday vacated the interim stay imposed on the release of Kerala Story 2 – Goes Beyond, clearing the way for the film’s theatrical rollout. A Division Bench of Justices SA Dharmadhikari and PV Balakrishnan set aside the order passed a day earlier by single-judge Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas, who had stayed the film’s release for 15 days and directed the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to examine representations made against it.
Justice Thomas had issued the interim stay at 3 pm on Thursday while hearing two petitions challenging the film. He observed that there was, prima facie, an absence of application of mind by the CBFC while granting certification and asked the Board to consider revision petitions within two weeks. The order restrained the makers from releasing the film during this period.
Later that evening, at 7.30 pm, the Division Bench convened an urgent special sitting to hear an appeal filed by the film’s producers. After a hearing that lasted over two hours, the Bench reserved its verdict and pronounced it at 4 pm on Friday, lifting the stay.
The petitions before the single judge had contended that the sequel misrepresented Kerala and had the potential to incite communal disharmony. One plea, filed by Kannur resident Sreedev Namboodiri, objected to the film’s title, teaser and trailer, alleging that certain themes and dialogues could trigger violence and unfairly stigmatise the State. He specifically flagged the teaser’s closing line — “ab sahenge nahin… ladenge” — arguing that it amounted to a call for confrontation.
Another petition by Freddie V Francis sought a ban on the film and challenged the use of the term “Kerala” in the title, contending that it falsely associated the State with terrorism and forced religious conversion, despite the narrative involving characters from multiple States. The petitioner …read more
Disclaimer : This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by FilmyFriday. Source:: BollywoodHungama
