Thiruvananthapuram, 30 November(HS): Film buffs in Kerala were in for a shock when they rushed to theatres to be the “first-day, first-show” part of the Malayalam movie Kaaval (Malayalam for Guard) which has Suresh Gopi, a Rajya Sabha Member, in the lead role.

Suresh Gopi is one of the reigning superstars of Malayalam movies along with Mohan Lal and Mammootty. It was after many years of hiatus Gopi has returned to films. Movie watchers who thronged the theatres in Ernakulam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Malappuram were taken aback by the new development.

“While I was standing in the queue to get my tickers, two well-dressed persons approached me and told me not to watch this movie. They asked me and others in a polished manner to boycott the film as Suresh Gopi was a Sanghi and communalist. They also said that we should not be part of the success of this movie as it would be portrayed as a victory for the fascists,” said Roshan, one of the hundreds who had gone to a screen in Ernakulam to watch the movie.

Roshan said he liked the movies of Suresh Gopi, Mohan Lal and Mammootty. “Each of them has their distinct styles and that is the reason why I watch their movies without fail,” said Roshan who also disclosed that this was the first time he was approached by people with a plea not to watch Gopi’s movies. Social media is full of hate campaigns against "Sanghi" Suresh Gopi and the need to destroy his career.

This was not an isolated incident, according to Lakshmi Sreekumar, an HR professional-turned-social activist. “Many of my friends in Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram told me that they too were approached by people with such requests. Though I had watched the movie, it was in a multiplex where such people could not enter. This is a strange phenomenon,” said Sreekumar.

The move is seen as a ploy by the Ernakulam based movie-mafia which has an Islamist moviemaker from Mattancherry and his film actress wife as the main characters. The actor-son of a famous movie maker is also part of this team.

“It is this actor son who schemed a plan to subvert the national film award presentation ceremony in 2018 at New Delhi by tearing down the merit certificates to be presented by President Ram Nath Kovind. But the timely intervention of the security agencies saved the Government from a major embarrassment on that day,” said Prasant Arya, a Kerala journalist.

Suresh Gopi, the national award-winning actor, was nominated to the upper house by the BJP. One of the rare stars in the movie industry who never maintains the halo of a super star around him, Gopi is loved and adored by moviegoers and the general public alike for his interventions in social issues. Film critics rate his portrayal of the role of Bharat Chandran, a strict and efficient IPS officer in the movie Commissioner as a benchmark for acting.

Malayalam Movie makers are of the view that the Mattancherry Movie Mafia is controlled by a Don from abroad. He has invested heavily in the New Gen movies which usually feature only Islamist stars like Fahad Fazil (son of movie maker Fazil), Dulquar Saman (son of Mammootty), Ashiq Ali and moviemaker Ashiq Abu.

The communal polarization in Malayalam movies could be understood by taking a glance at the credit lines of films that feature the above-mentioned artists. “The Islamist lobby has an upper hand in the Malayalam movie industry. We are all scared of them,” said a leading movie maker who has won many national and state honours for his works.

Hindusthan Samachar