Much ado about nothing

The attack against Mohanlal-starrer Empuraan has set a precedent. But was it justified?

- BY SAJIN SHRIJITH

The din is inescapable—on social media, in canteens, metros, cafes. Empuraan has been a hot-button topic since its release on March 27, and the debate over it is expected to linger considering the kind of extreme reactions the Mohanlal-starrer has triggered. Was this much noise necessary?

There are two sides to the Empuraan coin. The ones on the left are glad such a film exists. For them, the very act of watching the film has become an expression of protest against fundamentalists, against those seeking to curtail freedom of expression, against those who do not want the film to be a medium to reopen chapters from the past. The right sees it as a propaganda film, against Hindus mostly, and Christians to a lesser extent. Mohanlal, director-actor Prithviraj Sukumaran, writer Murali Gopy and the entire crew have been accused of peddling “anti-Hindu propaganda” and of “white-washing jihadis”.

Is there any substance to the wild accusations? Having watched the film on opening day, I have to say no to that question. Can a film be accused of anti-Hindu propaganda when it shows a Hindu woman offering shelter to Muslims on the run from Hindu extremists? Can a film be accused of white-washing Islamist terrorists when it shows a Muslim boy being rescued from the clutches of a jihadi group that wants to brainwash him?