This talk was part of ‘TransForm: Transgender Rights and Law‘ conference, organized by the Centre for Law and Policy Research (CLPR),  on December 14-15, 2016, and held at the Indian Institute for Human Settlements, Bengaluru.

Orinam thanks Gee for consent to share this on Orinam, and CLPR for making this available in the public domain (see TransForm site for links to other talks).

When we thought of how we could take forward the legacy of the ‘first love‘ video last year, we thought of involving our allies. After all, the campus is an ecosystem – and the earliest fear that LGBTQ students may have is whether they will be accepted by people around. Our allies in the video must have gotten rid of their doubts.

Our introduction video this year is called ‘Mere Saathi’ (My Companions) and is directed by Anisha Bajaj, a third year student of Energy Science and Engineering, and IIT-B’s first out lesbian student.  Says Anisha, a photography and video-making enthusiast, “Orientation should not matter in friendship. We have been lucky to have such awesome friends and we hope new entrants see the warmth too. My focus was to ensure this message comes out as clearly as possible”.

The video has three LGBTQ students, with their friends. It was first screened to a packed hall of first year undergraduates on 28th July 2015. The session continued with informal conversation with the students.

The video was picked by Buzzfeed and Storypick, and continues to spread warm vibes about friendship and acceptance.

In this short film, Nakshatra uses curtains as a metaphor for the insecurity and fear many young LGBT people remain shrouded in, and suggests that the process of coming out can bring with it relief and freedom from many of these fears. Curtains premiered at Kashish: Mumbai International Queer Film Festival in May 2013.

Nakshatra Bagwe (born on December 11, 1990) is a Mumbai-based filmmaker and actor. His short films are a hit with young gay audiences, whose lives he depicts in his work. His award-winning debut, Logging Out, screened at Kashish 2012, as well as in Chennai, New York, and London. It was also a part of Queer India European tour 2012 to raise awareness about LGBT issues in the Indian context.

Read GaysiFamily’s interview with Nakshatra here.

Nakshatra believes in the power of emotions to help him connect with his viewers, and in the precedence of content over capital-intensive production. Further, in his own words, “I believe we need to reach out to that huge section of people who need to be made aware about homosexuality, and not just those who go to film festivals. My film-making is based on this principle; my films are and will always be easily available to ANYONE on this planet!”

In full support of Nakshatra’s philosophy, we at Orinam are pleased to bring you Curtains below:

A Hindi version of Curtains may be viewed here.

What happens when a bright student like Mihir discovers the sexuality of one of his big time crushes, his senior? Do all same-sex relationships last for just a few moments? Will this one go beyond?

Avinash Matta, a student of film direction at Ramoji Academy of Film and Television, resides in Hyderabad. He was in Chennai for the screening of his film as part of Reel Desires, Chennai International Queer Film Festival July 11-13, 2013. He also participated in a panel discussion ‘Film and Theatre for LGBT Rights and Social Change’ with other directors from film and theatre.

View Kuch Palon Mein below:

Introduction: Across India, ordinary people who are straight/cisgender allies, including friends, family, classmates, teachers and colleagues, are taking steps to enhance the quality of life of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans* or intersex (LGBTI) person/people in their lives.

These allies are united with us in the fight for equality. In this spirit, and in connection with the fifth year of Chennai Pride, we are delighted to launch Catalysts for Inclusion: The Orinam Ally Video Contest to explore the narratives of our allies who support the cause of LGBTI rights.

If this sounds like you or someone you know, then we want to see you in action! If you haven’t done this before, check out some basic tips on making a video here.

Theme of the contest: Allies supporting LGBT rights

Duration of the Video: A maximum of 5 (five) minutes

Categories: The videos may fall in one or more of the following categories –

➢ Stories of how you, as an individual, group of friends/colleagues, or family, responded to an LGBTI classmate, colleague or family member coming out, and/or helped create a safe space on campus, at your workplace or even at home

➢ Non-LGBTI organizations in India that have made a difference to lives of LGBTI people.

➢ Music, art, photography, poetry, and prose strung into a video that can inspire others to become allies.

Submission: You may submit your video as a password-protected downloadable file (avi, mov, mpg) via vimeo, dropbox or wetransfer. Alternately you can mail/courier us a CD/DVD. For the address or to send us your link, email chennaiintlqueerfilmfest@gmail.com In your mail, please mention ‘Orinam Ally Video Contest’

Language and subtitling: The dialogue, speech, text and/or lyrics may be in any Indian language, including English. We ask that you subtitle in English, as needed.

Who can apply: Straight/cisgender allies based primarily in India (or diaspora of Indian origin): you may be a classmate, friend, colleague, parent, sibling or other relative of a lesbian, gay, bi, trans* or intersex person

Last Date for Submission: On or before 6.00 pm (IST), Sunday, June 30, 2013.

Announcement of winning videos: A panel will review submissions and select a group of no more than six finalists. All will be featured at Reel Desires 2013, the Chennai International Queer Film Festival to be held July 11-13, 2013, and the audience will select the best. The winner and runners up will subsequently be posted on http://Orinam.net and http://Chennaiintlqueerfilmfest.blogspot.com. A cash prize will be awarded to the winner.

Have an idea? Not sure how to proceed?

Check out our blog post with resources and tips on video making. It is easy, we swear.

Information resources for filmmakers

Still have questions? Need help? We are here for you.
Feel free to contact us