City to host its 1st LGBT film festival

For the past three years Samapathik Trust has been organizing a ‘LGBT Pride Walk’ in the city.

In a first for Pune ,a queer film festival, ‘Advait’, will be organised in the city with an aim to involve the mainstream community in issues related to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community. The festival to be held from October 10-11, followed by a gay pride march on October 12, will be attended by actors Amol Palekar, Sandhya Gokhale and Renuka Shahane. Gay activist Ashok Row Kavi will be given a lifetime achievement award during the festival.

Bindumadhav Khire, coordinator of the Samapathik Trust — a sexual health organisation working on the rights and health issues of gays, transgenders and bisexuals for the past 11 years — said there was a need to sensitise the mainstream community to the needs of the LGBT community. The trust runs three projects — two funded by Maharashtra State AIDS Control Society and the third funded by Alliance India.

For the past three years Samapathik Trust has been organizing a ‘LGBT Pride Walk’ in the city. “From this year we are planning to expand this event and have an annual Pune Queer Festival — ‘Advait’ ,” Khire told Newsline. On October 10, the theatre festival at Jyotsna Bhole hall will feature the popular Marathi play Ek Madhav Baug written by Chetan Datar, the Marathi one-act play Purushottam written by Bindumadhav Khire and an English play reading of The Wisest Fool on Earth, a monologue by Dr. Raj Rao.

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On October 11, the film festival at National Film Archive of India (NFAI) will showcase seven short films and two feature films. A film selection committee of actors Renuka Shahane, Mona Ambegaonkar, film critic Meet Kabra, Suhail Abbassi, executive producer of Sony Pix, Nitin Karani, trustee of Samapathik trust, approved films like Thang directed by Amol Palekar, Jaijaikar and others.

Khire said that a question and answer session will be held with director Amol Palekar, screenplay writer Sandhya Gokhale and director Sudhanshu Rode during the festival. Seven short films will be shown including Making of a Legend —tribute to Rituparno Ghosh — by Sopan Muller (English), Y cant I run? — on inter-sex issues — by Payoshni Mitra (English/Tamil), Acceptance by Karn Gupta (English), Logging Out by Nakshatra Bagwe (English), Ishq Ki Ijazat by Satyanshu Singh (Hindi), Wait a Minute by Lokesh (English) and Great Bhet— interview of Ashok Row Kavi — by Nikhil Wagle, IBN Lokmat Channel.

Raman Gangakhedkar, scientist at National AIDS Research Institute, will give the lifetime achievement award. The LGBT pride walk will be held on October 12 from 11 am to 12.30 p.m.

Anuradha Mascarenhas

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a journalist with The Indian Express and is based in Pune. A senior editor, Anuradha writes on health, research developments in the field of science and environment and takes keen interest in covering women's issues. With a career spanning over 25 years, Anuradha has also led teams and often coordinated the edition. ... Read More

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