Mammootty’s latest film Turbo has been doing well at the box office but has received mixed reviews from the audience.
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Recently, a YouTuber used Turbo’s original poster without permission and posted a highly negative review of the film, which resulted in Mammootty Company issuing a copyright infringement notice and the video being taken down.
The Mammootty Company is also considering further steps as negative reviews could adversely affect a film’s business. They have even suggested postponing the release of negative reviews for a week after release to protect the film’s opening performance.
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Such legal action is not unprecedented: Akshay Kumar had once sued a YouTuber for Rs 50 crore over allegations made against him.
Last year, Kerala police filed a case against seven YouTubers and video bloggers for posting negative reviews that had a significant impact on a film’s box office collection, in one of the state’s first crackdowns.
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This trend is worrying and could have a negative impact on the film industry, which thrives on diverse opinions and critical debate.
Restricting negative reviews, especially through legal threats, undermines freedom of expression. Critics, reviewers and audiences play a vital role in providing feedback and driving improvement in filmmaking.
Audiences may perceive industry actions as unfair and overly defensive, which could lead to backlash.
In an age where social media amplifies public opinion, negative perceptions can spread quickly and do more damage to a film’s reputation than the original negative review.
Turbo is an action drama directed by Visakh and starring Mammootty, Anjana Jayaprakash, Bindu Panicker and Shavaresh Varma. The film was released on May 23.
