Creating spaces sans bias

Thursday, April 9, 2009
By Vaishali Chandra
SOURCE:  DNA India

Bangalore: Reel life often takes flights of fancy. It, however, is a potent medium to mirror reality. The two-day Bangalore Queer Film Festival commences Friday in an effort to raise awareness towards LGBT issues among the masses.

Films are a celebration of life, a window into people’s lives. Good As You, a support group for lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender (LGBT) groups, and Delhi-based Nigah bring to the city an array of international films that throw light on queer lifestyles.

Read the rest of this entry »

They Made Fun of Me

Soumyadipta Banerjee
Friday, April 3, 2009 23:59 IST
SOURCE:  DNA India

Mumbai: The images started getting blurry for Karan Goel when he was only 15 years old. By the time he reached 27, a crippling eye disease ensured that Goel could barely distinguish between day and night. But by that time, he had already established a successful export house, got an award from president Pratibha Patil.

But that’s not all. Goel, a graduate from San Francisco State University has earned the distinction of being the first blind person to make a full-fledged commercial film in India. “My film is called The Other Side and the film portrays the life of a gay man who is forced to get married due to societal pressure,” says Goel.

But how does he make a film when he can’t even see the camera. “I used to see till I was a teenager, so I have an exact idea of the scene in my head. I ask my assistant to do exactly what is there in my head and when the shot is ready, my assistant tells me exactly where the characters are standing…at which points etc. Then I ask them to roll the camera,” he explains.

The scene takes at least twice the amount of time that a ‘normal’ scene would take, but who’s complaining? “Nobody! People are too appreciative that I have taken up the effort to do something like this. There was a time when I was not getting a job in the US for being blind. I was ridiculed and pushed around by bullies. And I just had to wipe my tears and get out of the place as fast as possible.”

We ask him why a film on gays, is he gay? “I am married. But I had a friend who was tortured and ridiculed. I knew how he felt. I have portrayed the trauma that a gay person goes through if he doesn’t have a support system. People simply don’t understand him. I knew how it feels when people make fun of you. They made fun of me too. I want to tell all my friends that people who make fun will continue to make fun of you. After a point, it wouldn’t matter to you if you have the will to succeed” he ends.

Karan Johar’s Dostana Banned in Pakistan

UPDATE:  The ban on Dostana was recently lifted.
See updated news further up on this page.

AMIR MIR; SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2008; (Source:  DNAIndia.com)

Objectionable homosexuality in film is punishable with death across the border

ISLAMABAD: The Lahore high court has banned the screening of Bollywood flick Dostana across Pakistan, saying it has some highly objectionable “gay content”.

A single bench of the high court passed the order on Friday on a writ petition filed by Khuram Khan. The court held that the movie propagates homosexuality, which is not only illegal in Islamic Republic of Pakistan but also considered a crime punishable by whipping, imprisonment, or even death.

The petitioner maintained that Dostana promotes gay marriage which is prohibited in Islam and all other religions. Gay marriage is an atrocious and obscene act, more likely to be performed by someone of unsound nature, the petitioner said. Islam says a Muslim should neither commit obscene acts nor indulge in their propagation, he added. “Allah tells us in the Qur’an that He created everything in pairs.”

The petitioner then argued that Karan Johar’s Dostana highlights the gay theme and the Pakistan Film Censor Board should not allow its screening, as being sought by the film’s distributor in Pakistan.

The Lahore high court subsequently directed the chairman of Pakistan Film Censor Board not to allow screening of the film and furnish the transcript of Dostana before the court at the next hearing of the case.