Indian Cinemas Pull Lesbian Film
The
Advocate, June 17, 2004
Some cinema halls in India’s western state of Gujarat
on Wednesday stopped showing a controversial film about a love affair between
two women because of fears of attacks by hard-line Hindu groups. The move came
after two days of violent protests by right-wing Hindus who vandalized cinemas
in several cities against the screening of the Bollywood film, Girlfriend,
which they said violated India’s traditional culture. “We have decided not
to show the film from today for security reasons,” Ashok Purohit, owner of
City Pulse group, which runs two multiplexes in Ahmedabad, Gujarat’s main
city, and Gandhinagar, the state capital, told Reuters. “Though there have
been no attacks on any theaters or any threats from anyone, we’re not taking
any chances.”
Gujarat, one of India’s most industrialized states and
ruled by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, was torn by the
country’s worst religious riots in a decade in 2002. Some 1,000 people,
mostly Muslims, were slaughtered in the riots. Cinema owners said they were
taking precautions after members of hard-line groups such as the Shiv Sena and
Bajrang Dal ripped posters and smashed windows in theaters screening the film
in various parts of India, including Bombay, home of Bollywood. “Security of
the building and the general public coming to watch the movie was paramount
while deciding to suspend the shows,” said Anshu Vyas, a spokesman of Fun
Republic, a countrywide chain of multiplexes.
Groups like the Shiv Sena and Bajrang Dal are part of a
growing tribe of cultural vigilantes in India opposed to the country’s
increasing Westernization. In the past, they have launched violent protests
against Valentine’s Day celebrations in India and have also stopped a film
on the plight of widows forced into prostitution, saying they denigrated
India’s ancient traditions. Homosexuality is banned in India under a law
first framed by British colonialists, but a strong gay rights movement has
grown over the past few years in urban centers like Delhi and Bombay.
Girlfriend had a lukewarm opening last Friday, but shows
at some cinemas have been packed since the controversy erupted. In Bombay the
film is showing in over a dozen theaters with police protection, and crowds
have started thronging cinema halls after television channels aired scenes
from the film. “Our shows were sold out yesterday. The crowds have increased
after all this controversy,” said Pawan Jain, manager of a cinema in central
Bombay. But some said they were disappointed about missing the film. “Why
should they stop screening the film? The choice should be left to
individuals,” said Abhijat Shah, a college student who came to watch a noon
show in Ahmedabad. “Nobody, whether it’s a religious or political group,
should decide what’s good or bad for me.”
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