S Durga will be screened at IFFK only if it gets court approval, says Kerala government

The Kerala government on Thursday said that the screening of Sanal Kumar Sasidharan's S Durga at the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) depends on the Kerala high court's decision on the film. The IFFK begins on 8 December in Thiruvananthapuram.

Sexy Durga review: Captures every woman's fear of the man's world around her

Director Sasidharan had moved the Kerala high court after the ministry of information & broadcasting had prevented the film from being screened at the recently concluded International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa. A single bench at the Kerala HC had directed the ministry to allow the screening of the film. However, the ministry appealed to a division bench at the court against the decision.

The state-run Kerala Chalachitra Academy had recently suggested that it might hold a special screening of the film as a mark of protest against the Centre's decision to drop the film from IFFI, despite its selection by the jury. The decision of the ministry led to several key members, including head of Indian Panorama jury Sujoy Ghosh, resigning from the IFFI jury.

The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had cancelled the certification of the film on 28 November. The producer and director of S Durga have now moved the Kerala HC challenging suspension of the certification.

IFFK will see 190 films from 65 countries screened at the festival. However, the inaugural ceremony and other cultural activities of the festival have been cancelled in view of the destruction caused by the Ockhi cyclone.

International Film Festival of Kerala cancels cultural events, screenings to proceed

The IFFK is set to take place between 8-15 December 2017.