Gender and sexuality film festival touches a gamut of issues
May 16, 2007 - 2:12:06 PM
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The festival, held at the Indian Habitat Centre, was organized by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust -, Prasar Bharati Corporation, the Mac Arthur Foundation and UNESCO.
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By IANS,
[RxPG] New Delhi, May 16 - From women-centric themes about gender bias and physical and sexual violence to issues relating to homosexuals and eunuchs, the International Festival On Gender Sexuality touched upon several sensitive issues in 45 films from different parts of the world.
In the last lap of the four-day festival, which concluded here Tuesday evening, the focus was on mothers. One of the narrative pieces on mother was titled 'All About Our Mothers'. The film revolves around two women, from two different backgrounds. It unveils their journey, showing how they managed to strike a balance between their aspirations and social responsibilities.
Kudos to Manak Matyani and Kuber Sharma who thought of making such a beautiful film on such a simple but important topic. They cast their own mothers in the lead roles. The women opened up in front of the camera and shared their dreams and desires as young girls and the hurdles they overcame to live on their own terms and conditions.
An eye opener of sorts, the movie leads us to think about how well do we know our own mothers and whether we really care about their past. If Manak and Kuber's film is about triumph of women, Joydeep Ghosh's 'Goodbye Mother' is a touching tale of suppressed and oppressed women.
In Hindu mythology, women are placed on the highest pedestal and worshipped as the mother goddess. Ironically, the ground reality is that despite educational and social changes, women in Indian society are subject to ill treatment for various reasons. Very deftly, Joydeep has shown these two contrasting aspects of womanhood in his narration.
On one hand the director focuses on Durga Puja - a celebration of women power - and simultaneously he follows the trials and tribulations of a mother thrown out of the house by her son, a woman who agrees to carry an embryo of her own daughter to save her marriage and a woman who is being cheated by men at every stage of her life.
It confirms that even today the status of women in Indian society remains almost the same - be it rich or poor - women are still exploited.
The festival, held at the Indian Habitat Centre, was organized by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust -, Prasar Bharati Corporation, the Mac Arthur Foundation and UNESCO.
Apart from film screenings, several panel discussions were also held during the festival. The event received an overwhelming response from students, professionals and intellectuals, who thronged the venue.
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