Gays in Bollywood Films
by Andre Soares
"Disassociating queer from sleazy" — though the "aberrant" label remains — in the Times of India:
"Real people with an aberrant sexual orientation have also led to Bollywood tentatively moving away from its song-and-dance routine for fresh cinema. Deepa Mehta’s Fire, released in 1998, ventured into forbidden terrain by exploring the sensual relationship of a young bride with her sister-in-law. Mahesh Dattani, whose Mango Souffli [sic] ([photo,] 2002) breaks away from hackneyed romantic imagery with an erotic under-water gay kissing scene, believes that a number of Bollywood films caricature homosexuals. As a result, shopping for actors to perform a gay role becomes difficult. Onir, director of My Brother Nikhil, also decries the stigma against homosexuals: ‘A homophobic community must be fed slowly with important issues, just like one would feed a baby.’ The protagonist in his film, Nikhil, is a normal guy, ’someone you grow to love — his homosexuality is something the audience is gently made comfortable with.’ Albeit not a gay film, it does portray a homosexual relationship with cinematic depth and sensitivity.
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New movie Dostana (releasing on Nov 26) is trying to change the bollywood perpective.