‘Good news’ that Kerala Story-2 is not being widely watched, says Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday (March 6, 2026) said that “it was good news” that the movie Kerala Story-2 Goes Beyond was not being widely watched.

In an interaction with college students in Kuttikkanam, Idukki district, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha spoke on various topics including artificial intelligence, education and martial arts.

Responding to a student’s question about movies being used as propaganda, Mr. Gandhi shared his views on Kerala Story-2 Goes Beyond. “While the good news is that Kerala Story-2 seems to be empty, and no one is watching it, it also shows that there are people, a majority of them, who have not understood what Kerala is and its traditions and culture are,” he said.

According to Mr. Gandhi, movies, television and media have increasingly been “weaponised”. “It is used precisely for that purpose — to vilify people, eliminate them and create divisions in society so that certain people benefit while others are harmed. India has become very much like that,” he said.

The Congress leader said such developments were extremely damaging for the country, and large amounts of money were being spent on that purpose.

Speaking about his personal interests, Mr. Gandhi said he reads quite a lot on subjects he wants to learn about, but does not watch many movies.

“As hobbies, I like playing chess and doing martial arts. I swim, run and exercise to keep fit,” he said.

Mr. Gandhi said that although he represented Kerala in Parliament for five years, he could not fully understand the State in depth, but had learnt a great deal from the people of Wayanad.

“I was very surprised when I first arrived there. There was a big landslide that claimed several lives, but I was impressed by how people responded. Even after such a tragedy, they were helping others. It did not matter what community or financial background a person belonged to,” he said.

He said Kerala has very old and valuable traditions and advised students to remain rooted in the State’s culture while also learning from other places.

Mr. Gandhi also claimed that the country’s education system was under pressure from a particular ideology. “If you look at vice-chancellors in universities, a large number of them were appointed simply because they are part of the RSS or a particular ideology. There is ideological pressure on the education system. Education should not be limited to any particular way of thinking, especially not to the RSS’ divisive view,” he said.

On artificial intelligence, Mr. Gandhi said India has not yet reached the level of the United States or China. “At an AI summit, there was a Chinese robot masquerading as an Indian robot,” he said.

The Congress leader said that if India wants to be powerful in AI, it should control its own data.

He claimed that while the United States has access to global data, China controls its own data, which strengthens its position in AI.

“The recent deal with the U.S. has handed over our entire data to America. U.S. companies can keep Indian data wherever they like and will not be taxed. So, we have damaged our potential in AI in the last couple of weeks,” he said.

On the ongoing conflict in West Asia, Mr. Gandhi said that on the surface it appears to be a war involving the United States and Israel against Iran, but the larger geopolitical players were the U.S., China and Russia.

“The U.S. is trying to ensure it remains the dominant superpower, while China is advancing closer to it. That is the broader picture,” he said, adding that West Asia is the centre of global energy production and conflicts there have wider consequences.

“Even India is paying the price of the war directly because of our dependence on energy from the Middle East,” he said.

Mr. Gandhi said India’s strength lies in its diversity and added that, along with controlling its data and increasing production capacity, the country could become a global power.

“The path we are on now is one where people are made to fight each other — religion against religion, language against language, caste against caste. We are not producing enough and are handing over our biggest asset, which is data, to the U.S.,” he said.

Asked about politics as a profession, Mr. Gandhi said being a politician is a difficult job if one tries to do it sincerely. “If you want to do it seriously and have a value system, it is a very difficult job. You should be ready to suffer a lot if you are doing it for the right reason. If you are doing it for the wrong reason, it is easy,” he said.

He, along with Congress MPs K.C. Venugopal and Dean Kuriakose, also tried a few steps of Kalaripayattu, the traditional martial art form of Kerala, with a college student.

He said martial arts are often seen as a form of self-defence but are also a way of understanding oneself.

“It is about discovering yourself and understanding how you react to different situations. It is very powerful. It is said that Kalari is the mother of all martial arts. Kalari requires flexibility, and I am not that flexible,” he quipped.

Published – March 06, 2026 06:28 pm IST