The Kerala Story 2 makers say film has real cases that 'represent all India', brought to life after months-long research

THe subsequence to The Kerala Story is go down to strike the screens this month. Titled The Kerala Story 2 - Goes Beyond, the shoot showcases existent incidents from the annals of the Indian legal system, weaving them into a narrative. Producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah says that painstaking research took the team months.Vipul Amrutlal Shah on The Kerala Story 2While the first film focused on Indian women who were radicalised and brainwashed into joining the Islamic State, makers say that The Kerala Story 2 looks at the stories of exploitation that take place within India. For this, the makers used three representative stories, based on over a dozen real court cases from across India. “When we make a film like The Kerala Story: Goes Beyond, we wanted it to become more representative of our all-India situation. And hence, the three stories that we selected, we could not just tell their stories. We have taken many incidents from other girls' lives and made them part of their stories. As a result, it's a story of three girls, but it also has a reflection of a lot of other stories in it,” says Vipul Amrutlal Shah. The filmmaker adds that it wasn’t just research on paper, but a lot of groundwork too, that led to the making of the film. He explains, “We have done our research for almost six to seven months. We have met various victims. We've travelled to various parts of the country to meet victims, their parents, and people in and around. We've gone through various court orders, police, and FIRs. So a lot of research has been done. A lot of media articles became our source from which we went and chased the victims. So it was extensive research that allowed us to collect the right information. And that is how the film has been made.”Shah says that the three stories are meant to be a ‘representation of the entire country’ in The Kerala Story 2.Following the success of The Kerala Story, the sequel promises to push the boundaries further. Directed by Kamakhya Narayan Singh, The Kerala Story 2- Goes Beyond is produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah and co-produced by Aashin A Shah under the banner Sunshine Pictures. The film is slated to release in cinemas on 27 February.About The Kerala StoryThe Kerala Story starred Adah Sharma, Sonia Balani, Yogita Bihani and Siddhi Idnani. It followed a group of women from Kerala who were radicalised and recruited by the Islamic State. Though it claimed to be inspired by true events, the Kerala government rejected this assertion, accusing the film of spreading misinformation. Despite facing bans and controversy over its content, the film went on to be a box office success, grossing over ₹300 crore worldwide against a budget of ₹20 crore. The film also won two National Film Awards —for Best Director (Sudipto Sen) and Best Cinematography (Prasantanu Mohapatra).