In a rare show of unity, Kerala’s ruling Left Democratic Front and the main opposition Congress have come together to applaud Mohanlal’s latest film, L2: Empuraan.
Both camps claim the film "exposes the Sangh agenda", particularly its alleged misuse of central agencies and communal politics.
The movie — part two of the planned Lucifer trilogy — dropped on Thursday and quickly shattered records, grossing ₹22 crore on day one, the highest-ever opening for a Malayalam film in the state.
It references the 2002 Gujarat riots and is seen by many as a veiled critique of right-wing politics and central investigative overreach.
Off-screen, however, the film stirred controversy. Right-wing groups accused Empuraan of being "anti-Hindu" and pushing "Hindu-bashing propaganda". Despite that, leaders from both the CPI(M) and the Congress praised its bold political stance.
Congress MLA and Kerala Youth Congress chief Rahul Mamkoottathil called Empuraan a "pan-Indian film" and slammed the backlash against Mohanlal and director Prithviraj Sukumaran. “Those who championed free speech for hate-driven films like The Kashmir Files and The Kerala Story are now attacking Empuraan—the hypocrisy is clear.”
The Congress’ state unit also took to X (formerly Twitter), ridiculing critics: “People who never stepped foot in Kerala claimed their tax-free C-grade propaganda film was ‘the real Kerala story’... now a world-class Malayalam film exposes their true agenda, and they can’t handle it.”
The dig was aimed at The Kerala Story, the controversial 2023 film about alleged religious conversions, which Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had condemned as Sangh Parivar propaganda.
Vijayan weighed in again, saying, “This film exposes the Sangh’s plot to divide Kerala and take control of our coastline and ports… and now they’re crying foul.”
Interestingly, the BJP’s state unit has distanced itself from the criticism. “The film will do its job; the party will do its work. Let the people decide. Activists have a right to express their views,” said P. Sudheer, BJP Kerala General Secretary.
With Assembly elections looming in 2026, the political ripples from Empuraan may grow louder. In 2021, the LDF retained power with 99 of 140 seats, the UDF took 41, and the BJP lost its lone seat from 2016, seeing its vote share drop from 14.96% to 12.41%.
Now, as the culture war spills into cinemas, Empuraan has added a new front to Kerala’s political battle.
