India’s public broadcaster Doordarshan has opted to air “The Kerala Story” on DD National today. Doordarshan has asserted that it as a matter of public interest. The move has reignited debates over propaganda and communal tensions.
दूरदर्शन आपके लिए लाया है ब्लॉकबस्टर फिल्म #TheKeralaStory। @sudiptoSENtlm के दमदार निर्देशन के साथ इस फिल्म में नजर आएंगे @adah_sharma, योगिता बिहानी, @soniabalani9 और @Pranavmisshra जैसे शानदार सितारे।देखना न भूलें, शुक्रवार, 5 अप्रैल, रात 08:00 बजे सिर्फ़ #DDNational पर। pic.twitter.com/tPtdmGP84n
— Doordarshan National दूरदर्शन नेशनल (@DDNational) April 4, 2024
Directed by Sudipto Sen, “The Kerala Story” portrays Kerala as a hub for Islamic State recruitment. The movie shows Muslim men purportedly persuading Hindu women to join the conflict in Syria. Initially, the film claimed that 32,000 women from Kerala were enticed, later revising the figure to three, sparking widespread skepticism.
केरल की वो कहानी जिसने पूरी दुनिया को झकझोर कर रख दिया!
दूरदर्शन आपके लिए लाया है ब्लॉकबस्टर फिल्म #TheKeralaStory। @sudiptoSENtlm के दमदार निर्देशन के साथ इस फिल्म में नजर आएंगे @adah_sharma, योगिता बिहानी, @soniabalani9 और @Pranavmisshra जैसे शानदार सितारे। देखना न… pic.twitter.com/vGTCP6536i
— Doordarshan National दूरदर्शन नेशनल (@DDNational) April 5, 2024
Upon its release last year, the movie garnered accolades from prominent BJP leaders. Politicians organized special screenings and facilitated tax exemptions in BJP-led states.
Criticism of The Kerala Story Doordarshan Telecast
The decision by DD National to broadcast the contentious film has drawn sharp criticism, notably from Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who denounced it as “highly condemnable.”
The decision by @DDNational to broadcast the film ‘Kerala Story’, which incites polarisation, is highly condemnable. The national news broadcaster should not become a propaganda machine of the BJP-RSS combine and withdraw from screening a film that only seeks to exacerbate…
— Pinarayi Vijayan (@pinarayivijayan) April 4, 2024
Vijayan took to social media platform X, asserting, “The national news broadcaster should not become a propaganda machine of the BJP-RSS combine and withdraw from screening a film that only seeks to exacerbate communal tensions ahead of the general elections. Kerala will remain steadfast in opposing such malicious attempts to sow hatred.”
While the government has yet to issue an official statement on the matter, Prasar Bharati’s former CEO engaged in the discourse, responding to Vijayan’s tweet.
Perhaps the Hon’ble Chief Minister forgets how Tamas was aired on Doordarshan in the 1980s during an era when the Public Broadcaster was the sole television channel and there was no private media https://t.co/q4sWfJazWw
— Shashi Shekhar Vempati शशि शेखर (@shashidigital) April 4, 2024
The move to air “The Kerala Story” on a national platform like DD National has sparked intense debate over journalistic ethics, political influence, and the role of public broadcasters in shaping narratives. As tensions escalate ahead of general elections, the decision raises significant concerns about fostering communal harmony and unbiased reporting.
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