Pune | A students' outfit at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) has strongly condemned the decision to confer a national award to "The Kerala Story", citing that the government-backed recognition for the film is "not simply disappointing, but dangerous".

Filmmaker Sudipto Sen won the Best Director award for "The Kerala Story", which also received the award for Best Cinematography at the 71st National Film Awards.

The 2023 film had courted controversy for its portrayal of women in Kerala being forcefully converted and recruited by the terror group Islamic State.

The Students' Association of the FTII, in a statement on August 2, said 'The Kerala Story' was not a film, but a weapon.

"The state has once again made its position clear: it will reward propaganda disguised as cinema if it aligns with its majoritarian, hate-filled agenda. 'The Kerala Story' is not a film; it is a weapon. A falsified narrative aimed at vilifying the Muslim community and demonising an entire state that has historically stood for communal harmony, education, and resistance," it said.

Cinema is not neutral, it is a powerful instrument of influence, it said, adding that the decision to award the film is "simply not disappointing, but dangerous".

"When a government-endorsed body elevates a film that spreads misinformation and paranoia against minorities, it is not merely 'recognising art', it is legitimising violence. It is scripting future lynchings, social exclusion, and political othering," the statement read.

The students' outfit further condemned the fact that cinema is being reduced to a tool of state-sponsored communalism.

"We refuse to accept that Islamophobia is now award-worthy. And we refuse to be silent as the industry we hope to enter is being reshaped to reward lies, bigotry, and fascist ideology. The state must understand: giving awards to propaganda does not make it true. And we, as students and citizens, will not stop calling it what it is-incitement. Violence," it added