No movie shoots at Sabarimala: Kerala Devaswom Minister after Athimanoharam row

Kerala Devaswom Minister K Muraleedharan has said that no permission will be granted for movie shoots at Sabarimala, following a controversy over permission given to the team of Mohanlal-starrer Athimanoharam to film at the temple. The Travancore Devaswom Board had reportedly granted permission with strict conditions, but the Forest Department subsequently denied permission for the shoot.Speaking about the issue in an exclusive conversation with India Today, Muraleedharan, a senior Congress leader and the son of former Kerala Chief Minister K Karunakaran, said he would look into the matter in detail and reiterated that Sabarimala cannot be used as a regular film-shooting location."We can't let movie shoots happen at Sabarimala. Permission can be granted only for movies related to Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala temple and religious films. Normal films cannot be granted permission. Temples cannot be given for shooting. That's government policy," he said.What happened with Athimanoharam?The controversy began after the Travancore Devaswom Board granted the Athimanoharam team permission to shoot at Sabarimala. According to reports, the approval covered locations from Pampa to Sannidhanam and came with several conditions, including a direction that the film should not negatively portray Sabarimala or religious beliefs. The Board had also reportedly specified that the production should obtain permission from the Forest Department. That permission was subsequently denied, effectively preventing the proposed shoot from going ahead.The development has now led to questions over how the Devaswom Board granted permission in the first place and whether such approvals can be issued for regular commercial films at the pilgrimage centre. The Sabarimala temple is administered by the Travancore Devaswom Board, which officially lists the Sabarimala Executive Officer and other administrative authorities on its website.What is Athimanoharam?Directed by Tharun Moorthy, Athimanoharam stars Mohanlal in the lead role, with Meera Jasmine as the female lead. The cast also includes Lalu Alex, Manoj K Jayan, Jagadish, Irshad, Sudheesh and Pramod Veliyanad, among others. Photo: IMDb A substantial portion of the film has already been completed, with Thodupuzha and Kochi serving as key shooting locations. The remaining portions were planned across Thodupuzha, Kochi, Sabarimala, Hyderabad and Mumbai. The film is scheduled to release worldwide on December 24.- EndsPublished By: Sanjay Ponnappa CSPublished On: Aug 17, 2026 18:57 IST