7 queer films that walked so that Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan could fly

Before Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan, here are seven Indian films that feature queer characters.

On Friday, actor Ayushmann Khurrana will appear as a homosexual man in Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan, a standalone sequel to the 2017 hit, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, which is being touted as the first mainstream Bollywood film about queer love.

Fawad Khan, Ayushmann Khurrana and Manoj Bajpayee have all played homosexual characters in films.

“As an artist, I’m fortunate and privileged to be living and working in such times. I’m proud of my country and industry for the progressiveness that it has shown in the recent past and I’m grateful that I’m part of such a vision like Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan that tells us about important life and societal lessons,” the actor told IANS in a recent interview.

In 2018, the Supreme Court of India decriminalised homosexuality by declaring Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code unconstitutional in respect of consensual homosexual sex between adults.

Ahead of Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan, here are seven Indian films that feature queer characters.

I Am

Directed by Onir, the anthology film was divided into four section, which dealt with themes as wide ranging as child abuse, the exodus of the Kashmiri Pandits, sperm donation and gay rights.

Kapoor & Sons

Marking a huge creative leap for producer Karan Johar, who previously released the regressive Dostana, Kapoor & Sons was a far more subtle look at being queer in modern India.

Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga

The very progressive Sonam Kapoor tried to keep the same-sex romance at the centre of her film a secret in the run-up to its release, but once the audiences saw it, they appreciated the mature manner in which the subject matter was handled.

Aligarh

Perhaps the most grounded Hindi film about homosexuality, Hansal Mehta’s Aligarh told the story of a gay college professor, forced to live his entire life in the closet, for fear of societal backlash.

Angry Indian Goddesses

Director Pan Nalin’s film is set before same-sex relationships were decriminalised in India, casting an ominous shadow on the central relationship in the movie.

Memories in March

Deepti Naval and the pathbreaking Rituparno Ghosh starred in this English-language film about a mother coming to terms with her late son’s sexuality.

Margarita with a Straw

Before making The Sky is Pink with Priyanka Chopra, director Shonali Bose directed Kalki Koechlin in this film, about Indian teenager with cerebral palsy who comes of age following a complex relationship with a blind girl.

A special shout out to Amazon Prime series Made in Heaven, which uncompromisingly portrayed a same-sex relationship.

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