If you have complaints about Kesari 2's historical accuracies, you are a ‘philistine', according to Dharma Productions creative head

Indian Express

22-04-2025

While Kesari Chapter 2: The Untold Story of Jallianwala Bagh continues a decent run at the box office and garners positive audience feedback, the film has also drawn criticism for its alleged historical inaccuracies. Kesari 2 was sold as an untold account of history, but was later revealed to be entirely fictional. Addressing the backlash, Somen Mishra, the creative head at Dharma Productions and the film's executive producer, took to X (formerly Twitter) to defend the film, calling the its critics 'philistines.'
Mishra reshared an interview of Kesari 2 director Karan Singh Tyagi with Bollywood Hungama, highlighting the filmmaker's comments on blending fact with fiction. In the interview, Tyagi explained that the film is a synthesis of 'history and fiction,' citing screenwriting icon Aaron Sorkin to support his approach.
'One of my screenwriting heroes, Aaron Sorkin, once said that films based on real-life events aren't supposed to be photographs. They can be paintings. In a painting, there's more latitude to dramatize and express an idea,' Tyagi said in the intreview. 'That's what I aimed to do. I wanted Sankaran Nair's story to reach as wide an audience as possible. With the support of his family, my co-writers and I set out to portray a man's journey from a British loyalist to one of India's fiercest patriots — someone who used the power of the courts to challenge an empire.'
Mishra accompanied the post with hashtags like 'Masterclass For Philistines,' and 'IYKYK.'
a man's journey from a British loyalist to one of India's fiercest patriots — someone who used the power of the courts to challenge an empire – @karanstyagi #KesariChapter2 #MasterclassForPhilistines #IYKYK
— somen mishra (@somenmishra0) April 20, 2025
The film has found fair amount of commercial traction and is being hailed by many as a comeback for Akshay Kumar, whose recent releases have mostly underperformed. Akshay is also receiving praise for his performance in the film, which has made around Rs 50 crore worldwide. That being said, it isn't performing to the level of the first Kesari, which made over Rs 200 crore worldwide during its box office run. The two films aren't connected, with Kesari 2 being a spiritual follow-up featuring different characters and being set against a different period in history.
This isn't the first time that Mishra has shown his outspoken nature on social media. In an earlier interview, he said that sales of sex toys increased after the release of the Karan Johar -direct segment of Lust Stories. He also accused Vidhu Vinod Chopra of being 'chindi' with credits on 12th Fail. He wrote, 'Be like Rohit Shetty. Be like my boss KJ. Always acknowledge your writers. Stop hogging all credits. Some directors have a terrible habit of forgetting their writers. Don't be a d**k. A film which released on ott recently and is getting lot of love, nobody knows who has written it or the book on which it is based. Because the director remembers only him doing everything in all his interviews.'