Bollywood celebs to discuss LGBTQ community in films at FICCI Frames

Sonam K Ahuja in the film

Until Sonam K Ahuja shattered norms with her last release, Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga, Bollwood has primarily struggled with its depiction of the LGBTQ community in cinema, restricting characters to comic roles, or exploring them with such tenebrosity that seems to justify its place as a taboo subject.

Things however, are set to change, given that FICCI Frames, a three-day global convention on Indian media, will discuss the changing place of members of the LGBTQ community, in films.

Onir will be part of the FICCI session

Filmmakers Onir, Hansal Mehta and Sridhar Rangayan, actors Manoj Bajpayee and Shabana Azmi, and writer Gazal Dhaliwal will helm the panel of the session, titled Celebrating Rainbow: The Seven Shades of Content.

Leena Jaisani, assistant secretary general of FICCI, says, "The idea behind this session is to highlight the issues that the community faces and welcome content [depicting the community] in the entertainment industry."

Filmmaker Onir, who is credited with making same-sex love stories, encourages discussion, but doesn't believe noticeable change will take place in the near future. "Filmmakers are not rushing to explore the subject yet. The discussion will help spread the message, and attract filmmakers towards the topic.

I am glad that there is a platform where like-minded filmmakers and actors are coming together to create and educate the audience," he says, crediting Kapoor for unabashedly exploring the genre. "Yet, few are comfortable with the [genre]. In the West, same-sex stories and films on racial discrimination are celebrated, and even win the Oscars. But that is not the case here. I hope [such films] are better received in the future."

Also Read: Before Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga, these movies discussed homosexuality

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