Curated for Pride Library, University of Western Ontorio, Canada
Copyright Sridhar Rangayan, 2009
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CREDITS
Title: Tamanna
English Title: The Desire
Year: 1997
Language: Hindi
Genre: Feature / Popular Entertainer
Director: Mahesh Bhatt
SYNOPSIS
A "Hijra" or a transvestite chances upon an abandoned baby in a dustbin. Unable to trace the parents, he adopts the baby. The truth is kept hidden from her that he is not a normal person, until when she finally learns about his true identity she says 'that he cared for me like a father and I don't consider him to be not normal'. The film portrays the biased society that we live in and how we stereotype people for their reputation.
QUEER NOTES
The film, set in a commercial format is noteworthy for the taut and honest portrayal of the lead character, that evokes compassion rather than jeers. The film repeatedly underscores the fact that often, people born genetically as men, may be physical embodiments of manhood but in their hearts and their souls, they are sexless, they are the real hermaphrodites. Tiku is more of a man than all the men put together in the film. The hijras in the film make fun of him because he avoids them, thinking that by living with ordinary people he can forget the gender-deviation of his existence.21 The film is based on a real life eunuch Tiku, a hijra whom the director had met.
ACTOR/S IN QUEER ROLE
Paresh Rawal as Tiku (eunuch)
Tiku as Tiku (eunuch)
LINKS
Imdb: www.imdb.com/title/tt0205445/
Wikipedia : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamanna_(1997_film)
queer portrayals in Indian films