Worldwide acclaimed filmmaker, Faraz Arif Ansari spoke to Hindustan Times about the discrimination towards the trans and queer community. He is well known for films like Sheer Qorma, Sisak, Silva and Stanley Ka Dabba that are not just a source of entertainment but provokes thought by showcasing the evils in society.
In the interview, he spoke about the judgement of the Supreme Court which decriminalised Article 377. He shares his experience that how earlier too such a decision was passed in 2009, but in 2013 it was again criminalised.
He said, “It’s a coincidence that when the new broke out I was baking a cake, because it’s was my birthday the next day (September 7). There was a wave of joy in the air, everybody was feeling happy. But, alongside feeling happy, there was also a sense of numbness that I felt because this has happened and it past also. The decision happened and then it was taken away. So, the uncertainty of it all was bothering because who knows if it’s going to be stay like this forever or not.”
In his profession of filmmaking, he said that even today filmmakers are hesitant in casting queer actors. He added, ““People do talk about how we haven’t casted queer people for the movies I made. But, I tired. Most people don’t even try. I auditioned a bunch of people but they didn’t fit the role, I casted the people who did. It’s not about who they identify as. I think the conversation should also be about who is making the queer films, are people behind the camera queer? Who is telling our stories? That’s important.”
He feels just decriminalising the law is only half the job done. Now the society has to help in assimilating the queer and trans community. He says, “The law has done its job, it us now, as a society, who has to take it further from here and make the change happen. The fight for the equality is still a long-long journey. “
