E-Paper
Kolkata LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) film festival to kick off on Friday
Come Friday and 'DIALOGUES', the annual Kolkata LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) Film & Video Festival will enter its sixth year.
For film buffs nothing transcends differences and connects people better than films. And that is precisely what 'DIALOGUES' sets out to do.
Come Friday and 'DIALOGUES', the annual Kolkata LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) Film & Video Festival will enter its sixth year.
Over the next two days, the festival will showcase a mix of critically acclaimed and experimental films that attempt to understand and bring out the lives of those who defy the ‘sexual norm’.
Spanning everything from coming-of-age drama to artsy, the longest-running queer film festival in the country promises something for everyone. “The number of films screened this year is almost the double of last year’s. For the first time we are having parallel screenings,” said Nil of designer duo Dev r Nil, who is closely associated with the festival.
Organised by Sappho for Equality (SFE) and Pratyay Gender Trust (PGT) in collaboration with Goethe-Institute/Max Mueller Bhavan, 'DIALOGUES' will bring to audiences 42 LGBT themed films from across the world.
“The festival primarily celebrates writers, directors, actors and their work dealing with LGBT and queer themes and issues. But over the years both LGBT and non-LGBT audiences have shown interest,” Anindya Hajra of PGT told Hindustan Times.
This year, the festival boasts of 10 fulllength features, many experimental films and documentaries from India, Germany, France, Morocco, Peru and Israel, among others. The lineup includes an electric mix of films- both much-talked about mainstream releases like Rituparno Ghosh’s 'Chitrangada' and lesser-known ones like Sarvesh Mewara’s 'The Girl and the Autorickshaw'.
Also part of the festival is the much-acclaimed 1998 film, 'High Art', which talks of an exploitative same-sex relationship between a journalist and a fashion photographer and 'Izzatnagari ki Asabhya Betiya', which addresses the Khap issue of North India.
But three documentaries to be shown this year have got Malobika from SFE excited. “Thanks to our official partner this year, Public Service Broadcasting Trust or PSBT India, we will screen award-winning documentaries like 'Mera Apna Sheher', 'We Are Foot Soldiers' and 'Making The Face'. These are specially curated from the Dresden Film Festival and Berlinale,” said Malobika.
The festival will open with the world premiere of debutant director Ayushman Mitra’s 'Guide Gufran', a moving tale of self-discovery that merges sexuality and spirituality.
