The Kerala government has decided to take a confrontational stand by proceeding with the screening of international films that were denied censor exemption by the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B).
On December 11, the I&B Ministry initially denied censor exemption to all 187 films selected for the festival, citing failure to submit applications within the stipulated timeline.
Subsequently, the Ministry granted exemption to 150 films and later cleared 18 more as the festival began, leaving 19 films without approval when the event commenced. On February 16, the I&B Ministry cleared four additional films.
However, as the denials evolved into a political controversy, the state government decided to challenge what it has described as a “shadow ban” by screening the films.
Notably, the films denied exemption include classics such as Battleship Potemkin, Sergei Eisenstein’s Soviet masterpiece made nearly a century ago. Several films on Palestine—including Palestine 36, Yes, Once Upon a Time in Gaza, and All That’s Left of You—were also denied permission.
Meanwhile, the Centre allowed The Sea—an Israeli film deeply centred on Palestinian experiences.
Notably, on December 16, Palestine Ambassador Abdullah Mohammed Abu Shawesh wrote to Kerala Chalachitra Academy Chairman Resul Pookutty, appreciating the festival for giving space to films such as Palestine 36.
“We will not allow Kerala’s cultural heritage to be destroyed. All films at IFFK will be screened,” said Kerala Culture Minister Saji Cherian, criticising the Centre’s move as anti-democratic and an attack on Kerala’s progressive artistic tradition.
The minister directed Pookutty and the Chalachitra Academy secretary to take urgent steps to ensure uninterrupted screenings as per the pre-announced schedule. The festival has over 12,000 delegates and around 200 film professionals—including many from abroad.
Pookutty reportedly alleged that, for the first time, the Union government had insisted on clearance from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for screening select films.
However, sources in the MEA countered this claim, stating that the I&B Ministry routinely consults the MEA when foreign nationals are involved and that this has been standard practice across film festivals. These sources also said that the Academy submitted its request at the last minute and that clearances could not be processed in a matter of hours.
Sources within the Chalachitra Academy, meanwhile, said that the Union government has changed the procedure for granting political clearance to foreign guests, which in turn delayed the process of submitting films for censor exemption.
“This is something that began this year. Earlier, if someone wanted to attend our programme, they could directly apply for a visa. That is no longer the case,” said a source.
“Now, each dignitary must first obtain political clearance from the MEA. Only after that can they apply for a visa. We submitted the full list of guests for political clearance, but final approval came only on December 2.”
The IFFK sources say that getting an MEA clearance for the Jury Chairperson for the International Competition, self-exiled Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, was a Herculean task in itself. Rasoulof received an eight-year prison sentence, flogging, and property confiscation in May 2024 for making films critical of the government, leading him to secretly flee Iran.
The Chalachitra Academy sent its request to the I&B Ministry seeking exemption from certification provisions for 187 films only on December 3. Last year, the Academy had submitted the request on December 2.
In a letter to the Secretary of the I&B Ministry dated December 11, Pookutty claimed that this year’s submission timeline was consistent with last year’s.
However, despite claiming this, he noted that local body elections in Kerala—announced in November—had delayed the finalisation of festival dates.
He also acknowledged that festival-related work began later than usual due to this “unique situation”, and admitted that this had resulted in considerable delays in the final programming process for the festival. The Academy received formal communication from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting declining censor exemption for all films only at 6:13 PM on December 11—just hours before the opening day of IFFK.
National Award-winning filmmaker Dr Biju had earlier criticised the Chalachitra Academy for the delay in submitting films for censor exemption.
“In general, films screened at international festivals must comply with the laws of the host country. In India, foreign films without certification can be screened only with the permission of the I&B Ministry. This has always been the practice—not just in Kerala, but also at festivals in Goa, Pune, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and elsewhere,” he said.
“Typically, only films that receive approval are scheduled. Why films were scheduled without permission in this case is unclear.”
Dr Biju also questioned whether the academy submitted the list on time and whether the Centre delayed approvals despite early submission.
“If permissions were delayed despite timely submission, that would be improper. Alternatively, if the films were submitted only weeks before the festival, the government may not have had sufficient time to process them,” he said.
Academy sources, however, argued that no festival could function by securing all permissions before scheduling, as the process was inherently time-consuming.
They pointed out that the long-standing practice at IFFK has been to finalise the film and guest lists first, schedule the festival accordingly, and then seek censor exemptions.
Academy sources suspect that tighter restrictions were introduced by the Centre to “mess up” the festival, while the I&B Ministry and MEA attribute the issue to last-minute submissions by the organisers.
This view is also shared by the state government and the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF).
On December 16, the LDF adopted a resolution stating that the Centre’s move to deny permission to screen 19 films amounted to an attack on freedom of expression and free cultural activity.