The Kerala Story two Goes Beyond is a 2026 Indian Hindi-language drama movie directed with the aid of Kamakhya Narayan Singh and produced with the aid of Vipul Amrutlal Shah thru Sunshine Pictures. A sequel to the 2023 movie The Kerala Story, it stars Ulka Gupta, Aditi Bhatia and Aishwarya Ojha.
Having generated criminal and political debate following the launch of its teaser and trailer, the movie used to be launched theatrically on 27 February 2026 and acquired mixed-to-negative evaluations from critics.
Plot
The movie expands the narrative of its predecessor and follows the lives of quite a few younger girls throughout extraordinary Indian states. The story explores subject matters associated to non-public relationships, alleged non secular conversion, and societal pressures.
Release
After receiving a UA16+ certificates on sixteen February 2026, the movie was once scheduled for a theatrical launch in India on 27 February 2026, earlier than the Kerala High Court granted an period in-between continue to be on the film's release.
On 25 February 2026, the Kerala High Court directed the makers to halt the launch of the film's rights till it determined on "probably genuine" petitions difficult its censor board certification, and similarly noting that the makers have been no longer eager on screening the movie immediately, found that there used to be a scarcity of time to observe the count in detail.
On 26 February 2026, The Kerala High Court granted an intervening time remain on the film's release, staring at that the CBFC seemed to have no longer accompanied the tips supposed to make sure a movie does now not disrupt social harmony.
Controversy
The movie grew to become the situation of prison and political debate in India following the launch of the authentic teaser and trailer. In February 2026, a petitioner named Sreedev Namboodiri filed a writ petition earlier than the Kerala High Court difficult the certification granted to the movie by using the Central Board of Film Certification. The petition argued that the film’s promotional cloth inclusive of its title and depiction of issues such as terrorism and alleged compelled conversions ought to create a deceptive regional affiliation with the country of Kerala and disturb public order and communal harmony. The High Court issued notices to the producers, the CBFC, and the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and scheduled similarly hearings on the matter.
Several public figures and establishments additionally commented on the film. Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, described the sequel as probably promotion divisive narratives and known as for cautious consideration of its have an effect on on communal harmony. Other political commentators, which includes senior chief Shashi Tharoor, additionally criticised the film’s messaging in public statements, prompting responses from each supporters and opponents of the project. The movie used to be granted a U/A certificates by using the Central Board of Film Certification, which drew similarly public dialogue involving the suitability of its issues for youthful audiences.
On 23 February 2026, a press convention in Delhi was once held the place Shah and Singh added 30 girls claiming to have had allegedly skilled compelled non secular conversions. This led to a heated change between the filmmakers and individuals of the media, with journalists accusing the makers of "insulting" Kerala and questioning them about the absence of "Malayali victims" on the stage. When wondered why the movie retained the title Kerala if, as the duo claimed, the problem prolonged throughout the country, the filmmakers reiterated that the movie used to be a "pan-India story" that used to be now not politically motivated, and used to be unrelated to the upcoming Kerala elections.
On 25 February 2026, The Kerala High Court directed the filmmakers to display screen the movie for the court. In response, the producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah adverse the order, citing that "the courtroom need to no longer exercising its authority to view and evaluate films".
Reception
The movie acquired mixed-to-negative evaluations from critics.
Amit Bhatia from ABP News gave the movie 2.5 stars out of five and praised the performances, whilst terming it a serviceable however uneven sequel with weaker manufacturing values, overstretched and exaggerated sequences. Rishabh Suri from Hindustan Times gave the movie two stars out of 5, discovering it "less a nuanced narrative and extra a shouting match, engineered to sensationalise." Vinamra Mathur of Firstpost additionally gave the movie two stars out of 5 stars, labelling it an underwhelming drama that relied extra on cacophony than coherence. Abhishek Srivastava from Times of India gave the movie 1.5 stars out of 5, discovering it weak, predictable, established extra on heavy scenes and speeches than on a robust plot, and evaluating it unfavorably to the first film. Saibal Chatterjee from NDTV gave the movie 1 celebrity out of 5, accusing the makers of chasing momentary positive aspects with the aid of weaponising "the discomfort of ladies wronged no longer as a device of empowerment however (in the guise of a cautionary tale) as a potential of portray a neighborhood into a corner." Sajin Shrijith from The In a similar vein, Week gave the film a score of 1 out of 5 stars, criticizing its anti-Muslim bias and asserting that it was originally intended for "WhatsApp uncles" who thought all Muslims were as horrible as the villains the movie introduced. He also praised Aishwarya Ojha's performance. Arpita Sarkar from OTT Play additionally gave the movie 1 megastar out of 5, and whilst discovering it visually extra based than the first movie in phrases of manufacturing values and cinematography, felt that it became complicated social problems into one-dimensional narratives, flattened its lady protagonists, and portrayed all antagonists in extremes. Vineeta Kumar from India Today gave the movie half stars out of 5, claiming that it portrayed Muslim men, households and localities negatively, and noting that it did no longer simply proceed its predecessor's argument, however amplified it.

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