Feeling Zoomed Out? – Advice for the fatigued
Do you remember when a videoconference was an infrequent occurrence - something special that you looked forward to? Whilst being locked down, video-calling gave us a way to see each other, even when we couldn't be with each other. The novelty wears thin My first few months of the pandemic were filled with virtual business meetings, virtual learning, virtual happy hour, and...
KASHISH 2023 announces new Ismat Chughtai Award for best Indian woman filmmaker
The 14th KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival, South Asia’s biggest LGBTQ+ film festival, announced institution of a new award from this year - the Ismat Chughtai Award for Best Indian Woman Filmmaker, instituted in memory of eminent Indian Urdu novelist, short story writer, liberal humanist and filmmaker Ismat Chughtai, by her grandson and filmmaker Ashish Sawhny. “I am delighted...
Lockdown Diaries: My extended vacation and a beautiful entrapment in Holland
It was in November last year, when we decided to visit Europe. We wanted to cover about seven European nations. As our journey date was approaching, an unprecedented global crisis was unfolding fast. Covid-19 or Coronavirus, has taken the world by surprise. The unpreparedness of countries to deal with this virus has been exposed at various stages. We were also quite...
Women of my billion (WOMB): An unequivocal film made while walking the length of India to champion equality and end violence against women
Walking 3,800 kilometers might seem like a vast task in itself, but that was only scratching the surface of what Srishti Bakshi aimed to achieve. Her astounding story is told in a new documentary called Women of My Billion (WOMB). The film is a pragmatic, heart-warming documentary about the movement that Srishti Bakshi started. As the Founder of CrossBow...
Short story honours Indian girl allegedly murdered for wearing jeans
Author and human rights campaigner Saurav Dutt has written a short story focused on the murder case of Neha Paswan as part of his new collection of short stories entitled 'By the Shadows and the Sunlight'. The book shines a spotlight on reports of girls and young women being brutally assaulted by family members in India. 'By the Shadows and...
Iranian feature “The Another Self” gets two nominations at Wales Film Festival
Passionate filmmaker Amir Tavakoli tackles a social topic in Iran The challenges faced by transgender communities across the world are similar, but can get extreme in conservative patriarchal societies like Iran and India. A film that has been doing the festival rounds and bravely brings out the nuances of this bold subject in Iran is a feature called The Another Self,...
KASHISH 2021: Swingin’ celebrates coming of age in the glow of Taiwan legalising same-sex marriage
SWINGIN' Dir: Shang-Sing Guo 23 min | 2020 | Taiwan | Chinese Screening on September 5 - Program 1 in the Short Film Package - SMILES AND SUNSHINE Swingin' is the first dramedy/music film of its kind since Taiwan became the first and the only country in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage. So when sixth-grader boy Qiu is bullied in school for having gay...
From bondage to the company boardroom
Indian tea plantation workers swap life of bondage for a seat in the boardroom In a groundbreaking initiative to rehabilitate and include plantation workers in the Southern Indian state of Kerala, Priyadarshini Tea Environs in Kerala's Wayanad region saw the state government give 900 acres of land to the survivors of slavery in 1986. The plantation is seen as a rare success story...
Shalmali and Sandip Soparrkar to perform at the KASHISH 2021 Closing & Award Ceremony
As the 12th edition of KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival, South Asia’s biggest LGBTQIA+ film festival, comes to a close on September 5th, get ready to witness a grand spectacle at the KASHISH 2021 Closing & Award ceremony on September 5th 6.00pm on the festival’s social media handles @kashishfilmfest The evening features performances by Shalmali, Sandip Soparrkar, Aneri Chaudhary,...
KASHISH 2024: Short documentaries to touch the soul
KASHISH 2024 opens with a screening of “Spirit of Ecstasy” at 9.00pm on Wednesday 15th May. After that, there will be a further 132 films being shown in 3 venues over 5 days. To jump straight to look at what films are showing where/when then go here: https://mumbaiqueerfest.com/k24-schedule-2024/ The importance of the festival is not to be underestimated. Just listen...
