Fridae

Titled "Kashish" which means "attraction or allurement", the Mumbai International Queer Film Festival features 110 films from 25 countries – and 25 of those films are locally produced.

Organisers Solaris Pictures, gay magazine Bombay Dost and The Humsafar Trust (a gay and transgender sexual health charity based in Mumbai) hope the festival bring together filmmakers, writers, intellectuals, academicians, activists, stars and celebrities with both queer and mainstream audience in an interactive celebration of the queer experience.

"All the films screened highlight gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender characters and stories, exploring issues, dilemmas, joys and sorrows that make up queer experiences and expressions in India and globally," a statement read.

"It's the film festival for everybody," festival director Sridhar Rangayan was quoted as saying in the media. "We want everybody to come and see and understand what being queer means."

While this is not the first gay-themed film festival in India, the festival marks the first time a gay-themed festival is holding its screenings in a multiplex. The films will be screened at two venues – Alliance Française (Marine Lines) and PVR Cinemas in Juhu. 

According to festival organisers in a statement, they had received clearance for 107 films from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry while three films amongst the 110 films which already had the Central Board of Film Certification. The approval from the Ministry marks the first for an Indian gay film festival.

The festival comes less than a year after a landmark ruling at the Delhi High Court, when judges said that a ban on consensual homosexual acts, in place since British colonial times in 1860, was discriminatory and unconstitutional.

The festival is supported with grants from UNDP, UNAIDS and Movies That Matter, an initiative of Amnesty International.