Banned Queer Indian film released after two years of petitioning

"We need to tell the world that we are alive and refuse to be cowed down.”

Ka Bodyscapes

Source: Ka Bodyscapes

Indian film Ka Bodyscapes has been released into cinemas, having been banned from a local release for more than two years.

Produced in 2015 and hitting the festival circuit in 2016, the independent film, which features a core same-sex story-line, was blocked by India's Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) for “glorifying homosexuality”.

According to India's National Herald, the film's director Jayan Cherian has been on the receiving end of abuse from religious groups, with posters advertising the film being vandalised.
“We do not want to sit in silence,” Cherian said of the film finally reaching audiences.

“An artist’s only weapon of resistance is [their] art practice. We need to tell the world that we are alive and refuse to be cowed down.”

The release comes a month after India's supreme court historic judgement decriminalising homosexuality in the country, overriding colonial anti-gay laws.

You can watch the trailer for the film below:

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By Samuel Leighton-Dore



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