L2: Empuraan is the second film in a planned political thriller trilogy, which is written by Malayalam actor Murali Gopy, directed by Malayalam actor Prithviraj Sukumaran, and headlined by Malayalam star actor Mohanlal. L2: Empuraan which also goes mononymously by Empuraan or by its acronym L2E, released in theaters on March 27, 2025, and incited the wrath of India's ruling center within a span of the first 3 days. 

TL;DR Empuraan movie depicts the anti-Muslim violence that prevailed in India during the 2002 Gujarat riots, and also takes pot-shots at the RSS/BJP style of governance in Indian politics. The 'Sangh' thus accused Empuraan of being Hinduphobic, and the movie is currently undergoing 17 cuts and scene-changes. While the opposition i.e. the Congress, and Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan have come in support of L2:Empuraan, movie's lead actor Mohanlal has apologized for causing a furore, taking to his Facebook page. 

A Malayalam film exposing the Sangh and its designs for Kerala has shaken their ecosystem so much that they now demand the villain Bajrangi’s name be changed, 17 scenes be chopped, and key dialogues muted.

But what if people grasp the full truth? The truth of staged encounters,… pic.twitter.com/HzOdDa9Oxz

— Congress Kerala (@INCKerala) March 29, 2025

The communal hate campaign against #Empuraan and its creators is deeply disturbing. This is yet another example of a growing pattern where coercion and intimidation are used to silence dissent - tactics that have always been hallmarks of authoritarianism. Undermining creative…

— Pinarayi Vijayan (@pinarayivijayan) March 30, 2025

#RSS is completely ignorant of history.
Freedom of speech is not about
distorting history for ideological gains. Cinema is a creative expression, & altering it under coercion & hate campaigns isn’t a victory; it’s a sign of fear & cowardice. Stand with #Empuraan pic.twitter.com/ReUO5KVxrH

— V D Satheesan (@vdsatheesan) March 30, 2025

List of ‘non-propaganda’ movies released last few years. The first movie in the list was released and promoted by lead actor Anupam Kher in Pakistan also.

Stop crying about Empuraan. It has hit exactly where it hurts. Like Grok, Empuraan has demolished the Sangh Varsity! pic.twitter.com/jKhpxL4QRV

— Congress Kerala (@INCKerala) March 29, 2025

Amidst political pressure, calls to boycott Empuraan and accusations being thrown against director Prithviraj Sukumaran of being solely responsible for Empuraan's political mishap, former Indian Army Major, filmmaker and BJP's vice president in Kerala, Major Ravi has come out in defence of his 'good friend', Mohanlal. 

“I received many calls from my friends in the Army, expressing their anger. They want Mohanlal’s Lieutenant Colonel rank to be revoked. But I request you all not to mix his rank with this issue. He has done nothing wrong in this movie while wearing an Army uniform,..Mohanlal never interferes with the script. He listens to the story once and does not ask for any corrections”

Mohanlal is an actor, whatever the director or writer says, actors just follow it: Major Ravi (Retd.) (@ravi_major), Filmmaker & Director, BJP Kerala Vice President on #Empuraan row

Go #BeyondTheHeadline with @SnehaMKoshy pic.twitter.com/YJ7OQJOooG

— Mirror Now (@MirrorNow) March 30, 2025

While it certainly seems that Major Ravi is throwing Prithviraj Sukumaran under the bus while being good friends of Mohanlal and Murali Gopy (Major Ravi has repeatedly stated that Prithviraj should have been more cautious while handling a sensitive subject, and Murali Gopy, 'his good friend' should have covered the entire Godhra-Gujarat riots incident), Prithviraj Sukumaran's mother has called out the direction of making her son the sole scapegoat. 

"Neither Mohanlal nor the producers have said that Prithviraj cheated them... it is very sad that some people are trying to make my son a scapegoat without the knowledge of Lal or the producers. Director Prithviraj has not cheated anyone associated with this film or any film...

 

If you feel that there is any problem with the film Empuraan, then everyone in this group is responsible for it. They all read the script together. They all saw the scenes being shot together, and everyone agreed. If scenes needed to be edited during shooting, writer Murali Gopy was always willing to do so... then how can Prithviraj be solely responsible for it when everything was finalized and the film was released?” - Mallika Sukumaran on Facebook