Thiruvananthapuram: The much-hyped Mohanlal-starrer L2: Empuraan, directed by Prithviraj Sukumaran, received an overwhelming response in theatres on its opening day on Thursday, followed by raging controversies about its political content.
The film, the second part of the Lucifer movie, a trilogy planned by the Prithviraj-Mohanlal team, has become a topic of hot debate over its critique of right-wing politics and the covert mention of the Gujarat riots.
On the opening day itself, the Sangh Parivar came out with vehement criticism against the film on social media, while the Congress and a section of the Left platforms celebrated the film for portraying the right-wing politics as “villainous.”
However, scriptwriter Murali Gopy, who Sukumaran endorses as his ‘co-creator,’ dismisses the controversy, saying everyone has the right to interpret the film in their way.
“I will keep total silence on the controversy. Let them fight it out. Everyone has the right to interpret the film in their way,” Gopy told a news agency.
Gopy said the film has mention of the social and political atmosphere in the country and some people have expressed their views against it and others have accepted it. “Let them interpret it. I will keep mum,” he said.
“The Left is non-existent now. They are there on the extreme right,” he claimed.
Gopy had earlier received a bashing for his script for the 2013 film, Left Right Left, directed by Arun Kumar Aravind, which was a stinging criticism of the leading Left party in Kerala.
Some right-wing media handles, including Sanatana Dharma, have dubbed the film as “anti-Hindu”, saying Prithviraj had deceived Mohanlal and his fans by making such a movie.
Another right-wing platform, Hindu Post, claimed, “Empuraan has revealed itself to be an overt Hindu-bashing propaganda film, portraying Hindus as villains amid the ongoing genocide of Hindus across the subcontinent, including India.” However, the BJP state unit chose to distance itself from the controversy, saying the audience can express their views after watching the film.
BJP state general secretary P Sudheer said the party is not taking up any campaign against the movie.
“The film will go its way, and party will do its work. The party will not be affected by any film. The Sangh Parivar activists have the right to express their views and let the audience decide whether it is good or bad,” he told reporters here.
Kerala State Youth Congress president and Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkoottathil, who praised Empuraan as a pan-Indian film that speaks Malayalam, said the hate campaign against Mohanlal, Prithviraj Sukumaran and Murali Gopy over its political content cannot be accepted in any way.
“The same people who advocated freedom of expression for films based on unfounded lies and religious hatred like Kashmir Files and Kerala Story have now come out against Empuraan,” he said in a Facebook post on Friday.
Congress vice president and former MLA V T Balram said he was amused by the reception the Malayalam movie with a strong political content had in the theatres.
Bineesh Kodiyeri, actor and son of late CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, in a post, praised the makers of L2: Empuraan, saying they “deserved bravery awards for attempting to reveal the present-day reality.”
However, some Left-leaning media handles chose not to participate in the debate for “the total negligence in the film about the presence of the Left.”
Despite the backlash, L2: Empuraan witnessed an extraordinary opening, with its worldwide release on Thursday featuring 4,500 shows in 746 screens in Kerala alone, sources said.
The film continues to dominate discussions, drawing praise for its cinematic execution while also facing criticism for its bold political stance.
