- Posted by Filmi Beat, last updated on 05 May, 2023

director- Sudipto Sen
artist- Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Sonia Balani, Siddhi Irani, Pranay Pachauri, Pranav Mishra

“It is important to know when he joined ISIS, how he joined and why he did it..” Fathima alias Shalini Unnikrishnan (Adah Sharma) sitting in front of the investigating officers says. From here the story moves to a flashback and we see how Shalini, a Hindu nursing student from Kerala, is mindwashed and forced to convert and ends up in Afghanistan from India and gets caught in the clutches of ISIS.

Story

Shalini Unnikrishnan, Nimah, Geethanjali and Asifa are roommates studying in a nursing college in Kerala. From the very first day of the college, Asifa somehow or the other surrounds the rest of the three with religious talk and convinces them that the whole world is running at the behest of Allah. Shalini and Geetanjali slowly start getting attracted towards Islam. They develop hatred towards their religion and their family. Meanwhile, both Asifa’s brothers trap both the girls in their love trap, first make them pregnant and then leave. Fearing the society, Shalini accepts Islam, marries an unknown boy and leaves India for Syria. After this, the difficulties she goes through in her journey, how she reaches the ISIS terrorist organization and when her eyes open, the whole story revolves around this.

acting

None of the actors has disappointed in terms of acting. Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani and Siddhi Irani bring sensitivity to their roles. From their innocence to their fear, anxiety, anger, everything emerges in their expressions. All the actors in the supporting characters are good, although apart from the main three actors, there is no depth in any of the characters.

direction and technical side

Sudipto Sen has tried to present a horrifying reality on the big screen. The story instills uneasiness and dread on several occasions. It is reported that there are 32,000 girls from Hindu and Christian communities, who are missing from Kerala, who have converted to Islam and joined ISIS and are then sent as slaves to Afghanistan and Yemen. But if you rise above the emotional side, then there are many shortcomings in the film. The way the story has been portrayed on the screen makes it very uncomfortable. Be it scenes of carnage, rape scenes or other violent acts.. directors have been seen spoonfeeding to show the brutality of terrorists. Also, the dialogues of the film intend to spread bitterness towards a particular religion. Sudipto Sen certainly does not understand the importance of nuance and poignancy in the making of this film. Prashantanu Mohapatra’s cinematography captures the world from Kerala to Afghanistan. The editing of the film could have been a bit tighter, especially in the first half. At the same time, some violent scenes could have been left to the imagination of the audience.

rating

Based on true events, this film shows how girls are brainwashed to convert to Islam. Produced by Vipul Amritlal Shah, the film deals with a serious issue that needs to be known, but the story is presented in such a way that it distracts you. The violence in the film is shown to such an extent that it reduces the impact of the story and seems irresponsible at some point. 2 stars to The Kerala Story from Filmbeat.