Whose idea is it to release a dubbed Hindi version of films in Malayalam, Telugu and Tamil? Whoever it is, needs to get a quick reality check. L2: Empuraan has shown a clear divide in the audience for its Hindi and its original Malayalam versions.

Roshan Singh, a reputed film exhibitor in Bihar says the Hindi dubbed version has faced a clear rejection. “The voices don’t even match the originals. The dubbing artistes don’t get the flavour. They are too busy trying to match the lip movements of the original. I would say the  Hindi  version of L2: Empuraan loses its power and strength by 80 percent.”

A source close to the project reveals that the film’s producer-director Prithviraj Sukumaran and Mohanlal were totally against dubbing the film in Hindi. “But the pressure from the film’s  North  India distributors to make the film available and palatable for the Hindi belt was immense. Prithviraj and Mohanlal would have preferred the Malayalam version to go everywhere with English subtitles.”

So far the response to this intricate but expanded story is mixed. While hardcore fans of the first part Lucifer, Mohanlal and Prithviraj are happy enough with the pulls and pushes of the plot in the sequel, a lot of the audience finds L2: Empuraan saturated with plotting devices that don’t always lead through a door.

While the film is expected to make its 100 crores during the first weekend in the South, in the Hindi belt the going is likely to get tough as cine-goers are saving up for Salman’s Sikandar on Sunday.