Same sex relationships are finding a place in mainstream television—a step that is being met with much fervour and some scepticism
Regressive is often a word associated with Indian television. While a particular set of shows may well justify the tag with scheming mothers-in-law and overly subservient daughters-in-law embroiled in dramatic domestic controversies, another set of shows is overthrowing the label like never before — like MTV’s Big F. The show is the first to play out a lesbian kiss — without the mandatory blurring patch or a metaphor, mind you. It is true that television shattered the kissing taboo with the popular show Bade Achche Lagte Hain a while ago, but this is the first time that a serial has treaded into a far more sensitive territory of same sex love. And that’s not the only one.
Interestingly, prime time favourite, Bigg Boss also ensures that at least one of its many contestants is openly a member of the LGBT community, and has them discussing matters that one wouldn’t normally associate with a dining table conversation on national television. Not so long ago, a show called Connected Hum Tum had gay rights activist
Sonal Giani documenting her life on television where she spoke about intimate aspects and struggles of her life along with her partner. This, apart from Maryada: Lekin Kab Tak, a mainstream daily soap that delved into a gay relationship, although it did not resort to bold graphics or visuals. The new content seems to be inclusive in content, but is it helping in represent the community in the right light or cashing in on the sensational value it brings to the screen
Director of Big F, Abhijeet Das, tells us that the reaction to the kiss on his show was mixed. He says, “There were two kinds of people who were commenting on YouTube —the homophobes who were not so happy with the content and others who looked at the move as a progressive one. Even in the industry, there are people who want to talk about it and initiate a dialogue, but the change should come from the people who are at the top.”
Speaking about how the idea came about, Das tells us, “The story was fictional but was inspired by many people that my team and I have met. We wanted to show the truth and it was done very simply. We did not want to pass any judgment in the end and wanted to let the youngsters decide. Emotions are derived from personal experiences and we were delving into the same.” Was there never a fear of moral policing “There was, but the channel and my producer were brave enough to give me a ‘go-ahead’. The actors had their inhibitions too. They were scared that they might receive a backlash from their fans and won’t get other roles in the future, but they were willing to take the plunge. We are allowed to show stories on gang rapes and gory violent images, but are expected to make love behind closed doors. We are regressive out of fear,” says Das, pointing out that the number of hits the show has gotten on YouTube is at par with what viral sensations TVF and AIB have garnered.
He believes that authorities must wake up to the fact that with the Internet, the concept of censorship will soon become obsolete, so one might as well open the gates on TV to what is considered ‘bold content’.
Sonal Giani, an activist with the Humsafar trust, is glad that TV is opening up to same sex relationships. “It’s good to see that television is willing to show the LGBT community sensitively. Stereotypes do a lot of damage to LGBT folks and increase stigma and discrimination, making it difficult for people to come out of the closet. It’s refreshing to see content where the channel has bothered to do some research on their characters. It will go a long way in helping people come out of the closet as confident, self assertive individuals.”
Actress Madhura Naik who was part of the episode and shot the kissing scene with co-star Aasma Badar too echoes similar sentiments. “I wanted to test my versatility as an actor and the role was challenging. Also, the story interested me. I pushed my limits for this role. TV needs to think out of the box and get out of its clichéd saas- bahu mould. I’m glad I haven’t received any kind of negative feedback or comments for this role.”
Not all are as enthusiastic about this idea of inclusiveness though— like Mr Gay India 2014, Sushant Divgikar, who was part of the Bigg Boss house in its last season. He believes that the content is here to raise eyebrows and has little to do with LGBT activism. He says, “Films are more open to portraying the LGBT community like they should. From Nandita Das and Shabana Azmi in Fire to Persis Khambatta, they portrayed lesbian scenes sensitively. Bombay Talkies had an intense gay kiss. I watched the matinee show at Gaiety Galaxy with the single screen crowd and was surprised to see that the audience was very accepting of that scene. Who watches an MTV show The youth right But they are already cool with it. The need of the hour is to sensitise people who are not accepting of such relationships. If you show my maid a scene with two women kissing, she would be horrified. If you want to show such content, then show a mainstream saas, bahu or some such, from a popular daily soap having a lesbian affair.
We need to clear misconceptions about the LGBT community. It’s the older generation who need to be sensitised. While doing this we should also do away with caricatured LGBT characters, that are stupid and idiotic— comic relief material sorts.”
