Homosexuals in
Bollywood Movies
Anuja Hyoju
Prabisha Shrestha
Submitted to: Ms. Amy Lam
Date of submission: 7 January 2008
Introduction
The Indian film industry is the largest in the world as it produces around 900 movies
every year.1 Bollywood which is also known as “Mumbai-based Indian film industry” is really
successful in creating a special place in the hearts of million.2 Bollywood’s fame at the moment
is not limited only in South Asia but is also spread far across the ocean. Besides Asia, Bollywood
movies are released in east Africa, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Britain, Canada, Australia,
the United States and the other countries.
People in the east as well as in the west recognize the Bollywood faces like Amitabh
Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai. The dominance of Bollywood stars in the
advertising world indicates the popularity of Bollywood. In previous days, Bollywood was
famous for its music and dancing, but these days it is famous for the good and sensitive movies.
Many Bollywood movies have explored various social issues such as child marriage, polygamy,
dowry system, casteism and terrorism.
However, homosexuality, a taboo subject in Asian society and religion, has yet not been
fully explored in Bollywood. “Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to
people of the same sex or to a homosexual orientation.”3 Gay refers to male homosexuality
whereas lesbian refers to female homosexuality. Initially, many movies portrayed homosexual
characters predominantly for a comic relief. The gay or lesbian character was most probably the
1
Indianetzone. “Indian movies” http://www.indianetzone.com/1/indian_movies.htm; December 26, 2008.
2
Wikipedia. “Bollywood.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bollywood; November 23, 2008.
3
Wikipedia. “Homosexuality.” http://en.org/wiki/Homosexuality#Overview; November 23, 2008.
protagonist’s friend or a dress designer. But with the time and acceptance of the viewers,
Bollywood is opening up and making an effort to deal with such sensitive issues.4
Now, Bollywood movies are showing more interest and respect to homosexuals and have
not limited them to comedy. Some filmmakers have taken a bold step of making movies fully
based on homosexuals, but those movies hardly pass through the censor board and even if they
do, the films are banned before the release. For instance, Fire struggled a lot for its release
whereas; The Pink Mirror and 68 Pages were never released in a theatre.5 Therefore, the
objective of this paper is to investigate the type of homosexuality, personal, family and social
relationship of homosexuals as depicted in Bollywood movies. Thus, it is important to observe
the factors that prevent Bollywood from tackling this complex issue.
Methodology
Before starting our research, we first decided to make ourselves clear about
homosexuality. We looked up for transgender and heterosexuality, as these two are also the
important aspects of sexuality.
The most important thing regarding this project was to make sure whether we will get
enough movies related to this subject. We researched to find out the movies that have been made
and released regarding issue of homosexuality. We also asked our friends if they had watched
any of movies related to our topic. Then, we listed the names of the movies that included
homosexual characters for our project. We included the Bollywood movies Rules, Kal Ho Naa
THE TIMES OF INDIA. “Going Gay, The Bollywood Say.”
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_Buzz/Going_gay_the_Bollywood_way/articleshow/2696440.cms;
November 28, 2008.
4
5
Wikipedia. “The Pink Mirror.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pink_Mirror; November 30, 2008.
Ho (Who knows about tomorrow), Kalyug (Twenty first Century), My Brother Nikhil,
Honeymoon travels, Fashion, Dostana (Friendship), Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge (We will take the
bride), Na Tum Jano Naa Hum (Neither you know nor me), Fire, Page 3, Girlfriend, Life in a
Metro and The pink Mirror in the list to watch for our research.
Then we went to the DVD stores here in Chittagong and looked for the movies. We
could not get movies like Rules, Girlfriend, Page, Kalyug, The Pink Mirror, Your’s Emotionally
and My brother Nikhil. Thus, we bought the available ones rather than looking for those which
were difficult to find.
While watching the movies, we made notes about the types of homosexuals presented in
the movies and their status. We also observed the main scenes of the movie that reflected the
lifestyle of the homosexual character. Their personal behavior and relationship with the family
members were also shown in the movies. We made notes on society’s attitude towards them and
their response to it. The similarities and differences about their reflection in different movies
were taken into account as well.
The main ideas included in the paper are not only our ideas or thoughts. After perusing
our notes we had made and carefully analyzing the character profile and his problems or
emotions, we then decided the main ideas or the very important factors about homosexuality
included in the movies to include in our paper. We had used various Bollywood movies websites
as well like Gays News Blog, Hurriyet daily news and Wikipedia. While searching in the
internet, our main motive was to find out more information not only about the characters of the
movies but also the difficulties the movies had faced during their release. We also read the movie
reviews to make our research project accurate. Then, we compared the notes that we made while
watching movies with the information we had gathered through websites. We chose the ones that
depicted the reality in our society like how homosexuals are hated and segregated by family and
society.
Research Findings
According to a survey we performed in Access Academy, though many students know
about homosexuality, still they hesitate to talk about it. The students have watched fewer movies
that include homosexual characters. (See fig 5) Also the students have realized that very few
popular actors have played as homosexual characters. The students said that recent movies have
seriously included the issues of homosexuality. (See fig 3)Though the movies have influenced
them a lot to change their attitude towards homosexuals, still the social outlook towards the
homosexuals holds them back to change their attitude.
In most of the movies we watched, we found that few movies were completely based on
homosexual characters. From the movies, we also noticed that the gay characters were portrayed
more often than lesbians. (See Fig. 1) Almost all of the movies like Fire, My brother Nikhil,
Dostana (Friendship), Page 3 and Rules demonstrated how homosexuals are treated in our
society. But in the movies like Kal Ho Na Ho, Kalyug (Twenty first Century), Life in a Metro, Na
Tum Jano Na Hum (Neither you know nor me), Honeymoon travels Pvt. Ltd. and Dulhan Hum Le
Jayenge (We will take the bride) homosexuals were not included in the main plot. We realized
that the older movies had no major characters, but in recent movies, many popular actors were
playing homosexual character.
In most of the older movies like Fire released in 1996, major actors did not play the
characters of the homosexuals. But in the recent years like 2008, movies like Dostana
(Friendship) and Fashion, we can see popular actors like John Abraham and Abhisek Bachchan
who played gay characters. The movie Fire which was the first Indian film to explore
homosexual relationship seriously, and thus it faced many difficulties and protest in its release.
Other movies like Girlfriend and My Brother Nikhil that directly address the lifestyle and
sufferings of the homosexuals had to face lots of difficulties to get released. They faced many
protests and opposition from different group especially religious groups which held back their
release. 6 But the stories of newly released movies Dostana (Friendship) and Fashion are totally
based on homosexuality issues. Thus, the movies have helped to include the sensitive issues in
the mainstream of the movies.
From the movies we watched, we saw that homosexuals are widely accepted these days
in movies. Many homosexuals are even forced to marry to opposite sex without their consent. To
illustrate, in the movies Rules and Fashion, gay characters are forced to marry against their
desire. Homosexual characters are also included in movies to make it comical or more
entertaining. For instance, in recently released movie Dostana (Friendship) where two boys
pretend to be gay to trick a girl. People responded that the gayness that the actors presented made
the movie intriguing. The director of the movie claims it is an indirect approach to address the
sensitive issue about homosexuality in south Asia where it is still an unnatural concept. 7
In most of the movies we watched, we also observed that the homosexual characters were
from the fashion and media world, while other movies showed lives of common homosexuals.
For instance, in the movies Page 3 and Fashion, homosexual characters played role of media
6
Sinanan, Anil. “Homosexuality and Bollywood cautious coming out with Dostana”;
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/bollywood/article5139508.ece; 22
November, 2008.
7
Ibid.
personnel and costume designers. But some of the movies like Fire and My Brother Nikhil have
reflected the outlook of society towards homosexual people and portrayed their lifestyle.
Homosexuals are treated as an alien in south Asian societies. Thus, the movies were also made to
make an intentional effort to eliminate the existing stereotype among the people about
homosexuals but were widely criticized.
Analysis
Bollywood movies are the reflection of the society. It presents the social behavior or
activities in an entertaining way helping people also understand its pros and cons. Bollywood has
played a vital role in creating awareness on child marriage, dowry system, and inequality based
on gender in India as well as its neighboring countries. However, the subject homosexuality is
still to be fully explored because people are reluctant to talk about sex or sex related issues
openly. Besides, homosexuality is illegal in India and many south Asian countries, and according
to many religions that most of the Asians follow like Hinduism and Islam; homosexuality is an
immoral and profane act.8 Homosexuals are made fun of and treated as outcasts. Some also
believe that homosexuality is the “subversive culture” introduced from the West.9
Therefore, most film makers preferred to remain in the safe side and included
homosexuality as a comic element in their movies. Kal Ho Naa Ho (Who knows about
tomorrow), Na Tum Jano Naa Hum (Neither You Know Nor Me), Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge
8
Wikipedia. “Homosexuality In India.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexuality_in_India#Histpry_and_religion;
November 23, 2008.
9
Sassa, Chikako. “South Asia’s Homosexual Problem.” http://tech.mit.edu/V123/N56/gehri_dosti.56a.html;
November 28, 2008.
(We Will Take the Bride) and Dostana (Friendship) are the examples of some movies which
depicted same sex relationship in a humorous way.
Nonetheless, few film makers have to address the issue. Some movies address it as a
comical element while some infer it as a serious issue. (See fig.2) There is couple of intrepid
film makers like Deepa Mehta, Sridhar Rangayan and Madhur Bhandarkar, who has tackled this
subject in the main plot.10 Deepa Mehta’s Fire was released as an intentional effort to represent
the matter of homosexuality. But it got released after facing many criticism and offences. Fire
was lucky to be released in theatre though many years later after completion because movies
such as 68 Pages, Yours Emotionally and The Pink Mirror never reached the theatre. These
movies were released in DVDs only.11
The government till date follows the archaic concept about homosexuality and
politicizes this issue in the name of culture and tradition. Political parties and their branch
associations like religious groups Shiva Sena, oppose the movies that have to deal with
sexuality in the name of Indian culture.12 On the contrary, with the progress and widening
mentality of people, the number of movies that are being produced focusing on sexuality is
increasing every day. Viewers have a little knowledge that heterosexual relation is not the only
human relationship. People especially youth are open about this issue and do not fear to disclose
their homosexual behavior. Popular actors these days are candid to play homosexual character
10
SantaBanta.com. “Homosexuality rising in Bollywood.” http://www.santabanta.com/cinema.asp?pid=5191;
December 5, 2008.
11
12
Wikipedia. “The Pink Mirror.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pink_Mirror; November 30, 2008.
Sinanan, Anil. “Homosexuality and Bollywood’s Cautious Coming out with Dostana.”
http://www.iconocast.com/B000000000000095/YO/News5.htm; December1, 2008.
in movies. Bollywood at present is ready to explore homosexuality regardless of the various
obstacles it has to undertake.
Suggestions
Homosexuals are not being able to live freely due to stigmas that are ingrained in south
Asian societies which cannot be uprooted easily. They cannot live freely due to the fear of
getting secluded from their family. They disguise themselves as heterosexual for the sake of their
family’s reputation. It is not only the family and society that does not accept this fact, but the
government laws also foresee them as criminals. Homosexuality is illegal in many south Asian
countries and many laws forbid them to live freely in society. For instance, gay sex is prohibited
in India and if indulged in such act punishment up to life imprisonment is allocated according to
the section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).13 Besides, filmmakers who provoke such topic in
movies become victim of various politicized religious groups and court cases.
Not only the movies are the facing legal problems but also homosexuals in real life are
suffering more than shown in the movies. In India, movies addressing issues of homosexuality
are said corrupt, and also police ill treat homosexuals calling them criminals.14 With the release
of Dostana (Friendship), it is believed that the homosexuality will be legal soon in India. Since
India has greater influence in other countries of south Asia, once homosexuality is not criminal
offence in India, other developing countries of south Asia will also follow its footsteps. With the
legality of homosexuality, Bollywood can easily share the ideas about homosexuality which has
13
14
New Kerala.com.http://www.newkerala.com/topstory-fullnews-55065.html; November 28, 2008.
A wide angle view of India. http://nitawriter.wordpress.com/2008/08/19/calling-gays-criminals/; December1,
2008.
been a forbidden subject in today’s south Asian society. There are many actors who are waiting
for the correct time and movies to present themselves in these characters.
Also for the control of HIV/AIDS many Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs),
National Aids Control Organization (NACO), Union Ministry of Women and Child
Development, Law Commission of India demanded the legalization of the homosexuals. Thus
government can make a huge difference with the help of these organizations to place the
homosexuals as an important part of our society.15 People should understand that homosexuality
is not an unnatural concept
Apart from laws, the social stigmas and discriminations that prevail against homosexuals
should be alleviated. This is impossible without strict government laws and proper sex education.
Information about homosexuality and heterosexuality must be included in the curriculum so that
the students from the young age know the difference between heterosexuals and homosexuals.
Besides children, adults also need correct information about the different types of sexuality.
People should understand that homosexuality is not a western concept, once people have a better
understanding about homosexuality; homosexuals will not be regarded as outcast in the societies.
Conclusion
With the survey conducted, research and analysis, we can conclude that homosexuality is
not a new topic for people neither for Bollywood. People were unwilling to openly discuss the
issue as it was related to sex. Currently, looking at the number of films that have been released
and actors’ candidness about homosexuality, it is clear that Bollywood is slowly tackling
15
Homosexuality in India. http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/homosexuality-in-india-553.html; December 28,
2008.
sensitive issues and people are accepting it.16Now, when homosexuality and its legality is the
talk of the nation, Bollywood can come up with more of these movies. These movies do need to
relate to the actual situation of homosexuals living in the country. As movies have huge impact
on the viewer’s behavior and daily life, the filmmakers should look beyond their personal benefit
and showcase the real facts and condition. This is beneficial not only for Bollywood but for the
whole of India and even South Asia as movies and Bollywood stars have huge impact on people
as well as society.
In the same way, these film makers need proper, legal and moral support from the
government in order to pass out correct and accurate messages to the mass. The excess
interference of government and its laws is the major factor that is preventing film makers and
actors to research and show the true lifestyle of gays and lesbians. Thus with some
encouragement and appreciation Bollywood has a long way to go ahead and contribute to change
the old and inhuman behavior with homosexuals in India, in South Asia.
16
SantaBanta.com. “Homosexuality Rising In Bollywood.” http://www.santabanta.com/cinema.asp?pid=5191;
Demcember5, 2008.
Survey Questions
1. How often do you watch Bollywood movies?
a. Rarely
b. Often
c. Very often
2. Do you know about homosexuality?
a. Yes
b. No
3. How many movies have you watched that included issues of homosexuals?
a. Less than 5
b. 5
c. More than 5
4. How do you think homosexuals are treated in our society?
a. Poorly
b. Well
5. How were homosexuals portrayed in the movies you watched?
a. As a comical element
b. In the main plot
c. As a supporting character
6. Would you have accepted if one of your friends was homosexual?
a. Yes
b. No
7. Do you think movies can influence society to accept homosexuals?
a. Yes
b. No
8. In the movies you watched, who played the homosexual characters?
a. Popular actors
b. Unpopular actors
9. How often do you think the Bollywood movies include the issues of homosexuality?
a. Often
b. Rarely
10. Do you think in future homosexuals will be accepted in south Asian societies?
a. Yes
b. No
Appendix
Fig 1: Gays and lesbians in 13 Bollywood movies those we watched.
Fig 2: Bollywood movies showing homosexuals as comical element and or
portraying real life of homosexuals
Fig 3: Homosexual character as main plot or secondary plot in the movie
Fig 4: Treatment of homosexuals in south Asian societies.
Fig 5: Inclusion of issues of homosexuality in Bollywood movies
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