FESTIVAL VISION

KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival is an attempt to encourage greater visibility of Indian and International queer cinema among both queer and mainstream audiences as a means to foster better understanding of queer thoughts, desires and expressions.

FESTIVAL BACKGROUND

The Indian queer landscape is undergoing historic changes.

Pride parades in all metros, the historic Delhi High Court’s verdict on Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, re-launch of India’s first gay magazine Bombay Dost, the Indian Election Commission’s decision to recognize transgender as a separate category – all these have increased queer visibility both in the media and in mainstream society.

KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival takes this journey further through the medium of films. The festival offers cinema as a means to understand what being queer means today, and how it impacts both the queer community and the society at large and foster better understanding of queer thoughts, desires and expressions.

FESTIVAL NAME

KASHISH which means ‘attraction or allurement’ in Urdu does not have a gender or sexuality construct and is used to denote a deep attraction for anything – be it a person, an object or an idea.

Mumbai is the cinema capital of India as well as the city with the most vibrant & visible queer community.

International, because the festival not only represents films from all over the world, but also films that mirror global concerns and expressions.

Queer is an umbrella term that includes gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people. (http://www.answers.com/topic/queer)

Film Festival, that’s what KASHISH MIQFF is all about – films that explore the diverse realities, complexities, joys and sorrows that make up the Indian queer experience as well as celebrate queer identities in an entertaining manner.

FESTIVAL LOGO

The butterflies in rainbow colors symbolize the spirit of queer persons in India breaking out of the cocoon of social mores and flying free.