MCiné cinemas have stopped screening The Kerala Story following an incident at the Trianon cinema on Saturday May 20. A group of people stormed into the lobby to call for the film’s screening to be stopped. Mciné’s management fears for the future of cinemas in Mauritius.
Hénry Rotile
“Suspended until further notice”. This is how Rajesh Callicharan – the director of MCiné cinemas – explains the suspension of The Kerala Story: “We imported the film at the request of cinema-goers. Then it got the green light from the Film Classification Board. Everything was in order, and the film was already showing in our cinemas. On the evening of Saturday May 20 at 10.10pm, a group of 7 people broke into the lobby and threatened to stop the film being shown. The police intervened. But as we received death threats, management saw fit to halt the showing of the film for the time being.”
In addition to a brand to be won, Rajesh wonders about the future of cinemas in Mauritius: “Films are fiction. Now if we can’t show fiction, I wonder how cinema owners are going to make their business profitable if there are events all the time. For example, should we not show the film The Vatican Exorcist? If certain mentalities don’t change, I fear for the future of cinemas in Mauritius,” explains Rajesh Chalicharan.
As a reminder, The Kerala Story tells the story of the conversion to Islam of young girls from the Indian state of Kerala, and their indoctrination until they find themselves fighting for the Islamic State.
