After getting mired in major controversy, Vipul Shah’s The Kerala Story 2 has finally seen the light of day and released in theatres. A day after the Kerala High Court paved the way for the release of the film, ticket sales have been slow. Amid this, a scheduled screening of the film in Kannur was cancelled on Saturday following a protest by activists of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI).
The Kerala Story 2 screening halted
The demonstration began when DYFI activists, led by DYFI Thrissur District Committee Secretary K. S. Russal Raj, marched to the Thrissur Fun Movies theatre, pouring charcoal on posters of The Kerala Story 2 in a symbolic act of protest. The protest saw the tearing and burning of movie posters outside theatres, leading to clashes and forcing organisers to refund ticket holders.
#WATCH | Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala: Cinepolis, Mall of Travancore, cancels the screening of the movie `The Kerala Story 2` after the DYFI (Democratic Youth Federation of India) holds a protest against its release. pic.twitter.com/SnE0dYxPjz
— ANI (@ANI) February 28, 2026
The march was part of a wider campaign by the organisation against the film, which follows the lives of three young women who, according to the movie, fall into deceptive marriages and face alleged forced religious conversions.
As a result of the protest, the screening was abandoned due to a lack of audience, with theatre management initiating refunds and confirming that no live screenings would take place inside the mall. Similar cancellations have also been reported at Cinepolis in Mall of Travancore, Thiruvananthapuram, where rescheduled screenings were halted in the wake of protests.
About The Kerala Story 2 controversy
Ever since the trailer for the sequel was released, the film has been drawing strong reactions from various quarters and several social media users. Owing to multiple pleas, the release was halted for 15 days by the Kerala High Court.
A division bench of Justices Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and P. V. Balakrishnan stayed a single judge’s order that had put the film’s screening on hold for 15 days. The bench passed the interim order on an appeal moved by Shah late Thursday night, shortly after the stay on the movie’s release was granted.
Addressing a press conference shortly after the Kerala High Court order, Shah, who has co-written and produced the film under his banner Sunshine Pictures, said the film has been made with a lot of hard work and honesty.
“Neither our film nor I, nor my crew members, are against the state of Kerala, God’s Own Country. It’s a beautiful and wonderful state, but if something wrong is happening there, then I’m just bringing it to people’s notice. Once you watch the film, you will see that we’ve not said anything negative about Kerala or the people of Kerala,” Shah told reporters.
