3 min readNew DelhiFeb 28, 2026 03:43 PM IST
The Kerala Story 2, much like The Kerala Story, faced significant backlash ahead of its release. Similar to several films in recent times, Vipul Amrutlal Shah’s project had to approach the court after a petitioner sought a stay order on its release. On Thursday, a single-judge bench directed that the petitioner’s revision be considered by the Chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) within two weeks and granted a 15-day stay on the film. Later that evening, the producers challenged the stay order. The plea was heard by a division bench comprising Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice PV Balakrishnan, who on Friday stayed the single bench’s order, offering relief to the producers.
Apparent delay in release caused confusion
Amid the legal back-and-forth, there was considerable confusion regarding the film’s release. Despite uncertainty until Friday afternoon, multiple theatres across India had already opened advance bookings for the morning shows. The official clearance for release, however, came only later in the day.
The situation grew murkier when trade portal Sacnilk published occupancy figures for the morning and afternoon shows, adding to the uncertainty.
‘Shows didn’t start before court’s order’
Addressing the issue, Akkshay Rathie, Director of Ashirwad Theatres Pvt Ltd, told SCREEN that screenings were conducted only after the producers received the official legal release order from the court.
“The entertainment ecosystem works as a value chain. Producers don’t directly handle advance bookings. They deal with distributors, who in turn coordinate with exhibitors. The developments happened very rapidly — the stay order, the challenge, and then its reversal. Naturally, the producers’ priority was to fight the legal battle rather than immediately communicate updates to distributors and exhibitors,” he explained.
He further clarified, “Many cinemas suspended ticket sales. However, some were not immediately informed, which is why tickets remained available at certain locations.”
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Rathie also dismissed speculative reports. “Websites may publish stories for clickbait, but the release order was issued in the afternoon, and shows were screened only after that. As an exhibitor, I can confirm that at many of our cinemas, the 12 noon show could not be run because the producers had not yet issued the release orders. They did so only after receiving a copy from the Kerala High Court.”
The Kerala Story 2 box office report day 1
Despite the chaos and the cancellation of several morning and afternoon shows, The Kerala Story 2 reportedly earned Rs 75 lakh on its opening day, according to Sacnilk. Interestingly, earlier in the day, the portal had projected Day 1 earnings at nearly Rs 3.5 crore, which was later corrected. It also reported an overall occupancy of 11.99%, with morning occupancy at 7.32% and afternoon occupancy at 15.82%, allegedly across 2,300 shows — figures that sparked further debate given the legal uncertainty surrounding the screenings.
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