The Kerala Story National Film Awards Controversy: Jury Member Pradeep Nair Slams ‘Propaganda’ Film’s Win; Says, “We Must Rally”

Over the weekend, the winners of the 71st National Film Awards were announced, and they received mixed responses. While millions raved about how Shah Rukh Khan received his first National Award after 33 years in the film industry, others criticised The Kerala Story being declared the winner in the Best Director and Best Cinematography categories. While Sudipto Sen (director) and Prasantanu Mohapatra (cinematographer) claimed top honours, one jury member publicly objected to their win. Scroll below to read what they said.

Jury Member Slams The Kerala Story’s National Film Awards Win

As reported by News18, Pradeep Nair, one of the Feature Film jury members, revealed he was the sole voice protesting against The Kerala Story winning big at the 71st National Film Awards. He said, “As a Malayali on the panel, I raised serious objections. I questioned how a film that defames a state like Kerala and serves as propaganda could be considered for a national honour.”

Despite his concerns, he said the rest of the panel disagreed. Continuing further, Nair added, “I even conveyed my concerns directly to the jury chairperson. However, I was the only one who labelled it as propaganda. Others argued that, even if it was controversial, it addressed a relevant social issue.”

Pradeep further noted, “Every Malayali and all democratic believers in the country should raise their voice against this injustice. We must rally against politics that turns art into a weapon to foster communalism.”

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan On The Kerala Story’s Win

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also slammed the 71st National Film Awards for The Kerala Story’s wins. In a statement, CM Vijayan stated that the film was “made with lies to defame Kerala and spread communalism”. He added that by honouring such a film, the awards jury had “insulted the noble tradition of Indian cinema that stood for religious brotherhood and national integration.”

The Chief Minister further alleged that the move reflected the ideological agenda of the Sangh Parivar. He said, “They are implementing the Sangh Parivar agenda of turning cinema into a weapon to implement the communal agenda.” Vijayan urged all democratic-minded citizens and Malayalis to speak out against what he described as a grave injustice.

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Also Read: 71st National Film Awards Full Winners List: Best Actors Shah Rukh Khan, Vikrant Massey; Rani Mukerji Wins Best Actress

Grinell Jacinto

With nearly 10 years of experience, Grinell Esther Jacinto is the Desk Head of Bollywood Bubble. Her interests lie in everything that is kaleshi and she loves to dig deeper into the lives of B-town actors. She has a problem though – she loves horror films but will have chills the minute the theatres lights dims. She’s previously worked with Koimoi, UrbanAsian and SpotboyE.