19 films banned at Kerala Film Festival, including Palestinian and Spanish titles
The Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting refused permission for the screening of 19 films at the 2025 International Film Festival of Kerala, including several films on Palestine and the Spanish film Beef, leading to public protests and criticism of the organisers.
The 2025 International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) in Thiruvananthapuram has faced disruption after the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting refused to allow the screening of 19 films. The event, which began on 12 December and runs till 19 December, is organized by the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy and is usually attended by thousands of delegates from all over the world. The list of banned films includes several titles focused on Palestine and Spanish film. beefThis resulted in a hiatus from the program and widespread criticism from attendees and organizers.
Among the rejected films are Palestine 36, Yes, Once Upon a Time in GazaAnd that’s all you have leftAll of which address Palestinian topics. Remarkably, Palestine 36 was selected as the opening film of the festival and had already been screened. Kerala Cultural Affairs Minister Saji Cherian expressed support for the Palestinian cause at the inauguration of the festival, where Palestinian Ambassador to India Abdullah M Abu Shavesh was present as the guest of honour.
The festival organizers regularly submit film titles to the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for advance approval. The ministry reserves the right to withhold permission over concerns such as potential diplomatic sensitivity. However, in this case, organizers reported the absence of any formal explanation for the refusal. “No reason was given for refusing to allow the screening,” The Hindu An unnamed official of the Kerala State Film Academy has been quoted as saying.
In addition to Palestine-focused films and beefOther rejected titles include A Poet: Hidden Poetry, bamakoSergei Eisenstein’s 1925 classic battleship potemkin, Conflict, Eagles of the Republic, wolf’s heart, red rain, River stone, furnace time, Tunnels: Sun in the Dark, flames of fire, Timbuktu, reasonableAnd Satisfaction,
Many of these films have already been screened at Indian festivals. battleship potemkin and director Abderrahmane Sissako’s 2006 docudrama bamakoBoth have been featured before, for example, Sissako received a Lifetime Achievement Award at IFFK this year. Still, Spanish film beef Marion Alexander Baby, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), was quoted as saying it was reportedly one of the barred titles “because of its name, even though it has nothing to do with food choices”. scroll,
The decision has drawn sharp criticism from festival organizers and political leaders. Marion Alexander Baby described the move as an “absurd and insane attempt to derail IFFK” and called it “the latest example of the neo-fascist tendencies of the highly authoritarian regime” under the current National government.
Public opposition to the ban has taken the form of protests at festival sites. CPI(M) affiliated Democratic Youth Federation of India protested against the ministry’s decision. This followed calls for a reaction from the artistic and broader democratic community, with a former minister saying, “Artists, filmmakers and all democratically minded citizens should raise their voices against this outrageous move,” urging collective action against the ministry’s directive.
Despite the disruptions, the organizers stressed that film approval is a regular process and all titles are submitted for approval as required.
