Ram Gopal Varma praises The Kerala Story and slams Bollywood for staying silent

Well-known filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma has spoken out in favour of The Kerala Story, a film by Sudipto Sen, amidst the controversy it has been facing since its release. The movie has been the subject of heated discussions and debates on social media, with some claiming it offers an accurate portrayal of events in the state while others accusing its writers of spreading lies.

In a series of tweets, Varma criticised Bollywood for its “death-like silence on the shattering success of the film”. He also predicted that The Kerala Story would linger over Bollywood like a “mysterious fog in every story discussion room and corporate house”.

Here are some of Varma’s tweets in favour of the movie:

• “We are so comfortable in telling lies to both others and ourselves that when someone goes ahead and shows the truth we get SHOCKED… That explains the DEATH like SILENCE of BOLLYWOOD on the SHATTERING SUCCESS of #KeralaStory.”
• “The #KeralaStory is like a BEAUTIFUL GHOSTLY MIRROR showing the DEAD face of Main stream BOLLYWOOD to itself in all its UGLINESS.”
• “The #KeralaStory will haunt like a mysterious fog in every story discussion room and every corporate house in BOLLYWOOD forever… It’s difficult to learn from #KeralaStory because it’s EASY to copy a LIE but very DIFFICULT to copy TRUTH.”

The controversy around The Kerala Story started when its makers claimed that the storyline was based on the experiences of over 32,000 Kerala women who had been radicalised by Islamic fundamentalists – a claim that attracted criticism and sparked a debate.

The Kerala Story is produced, developed, and distributed by Sunshine Pictures, which is owned by Vipul Amrutlal Shah. The cast includes Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Sonia Balani, and Siddhi Idnani. The film is directed by Sudipto Sen and co-produced by Aashin A Shah.

Ram Gopal Varma’s support for The Kerala Story is significant as it brings attention to an independent film that has been able to draw audiences despite not having a mainstream Bollywood cast or being backed by a major production house.