By Rohini Banerjee
"Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code criminalizes 'unnatural' sex acts. This includes homosexuality," a message on the screen reminds you, before the movie even begins. On the surface, it seems like an obvious reminder--something nearly everyone knows by now--but once you're there, sitting in the darkness with only the above words blinking at you and then watch Professor Siras's story slowly unfold before you, you realise how real this reminder is, and how utterly terrifying.
Aligarh (see the trailer here) takes us back to 2010, when a shy professor of Marathi at the Aligarh Muslim University was suspended and consequently slapped with a lawsuit simply because he was gay. On a night of loneliness, Professor Siras had sought company and passion with a young rickshaw-puller, but he was denied even this small moment of solace when a pair of journalists barged into his house, and with camera running harassed him and his partner. They had already filmed him having sex, and subsequently circulated that MMS. Following this shocking event, the university--instead of looking into this disturbing breach of privacy--had turned on Siras, branded him "immoral" and took legal action against him. It's scary that something like this happened only five years ago, and that too during a time when the Delhi High Court had freshly ruled Section 377 unconstitutional (In 2009). More than that, it was utterly horrifying how a completely innocent man was brutally persecuted, only because he loved another man.
Director Hansal Mehta, along with Manoj Bajpayee(who plays Siras) and Rajkummar Rao (who plays a young journalist eager to help Siras), bring this story to life with remarkable sensitivity. Bajpayee's performance is perhaps his best yet (and that's huge, because he is amazing in almost every film he's in), and the way he brings out the nuances within the character--Siras's alienation, loneliness, despair, and yet a child-like optimism is something that is utterly beautiful to behold. Indian cinema often slots its queer characters into strict boxes, making them seem like types more than people--but Aligarh completely changes that. The complexity of Siras's ordeal, of the emotions he experiences, is depicted with great depth, and not just that, the film also explores the meaning of being queer with never-seen-before maturity.
In one scene, Deepu (Rajkummar Rao) asks Siras quite candidly whether he is gay. Siras cringes and replies that calling him gay means restricting his identity within those three letters--it is, again, slotting and confining him into an inescapable box. This doesn't mean that he is denying that he is gay, just that he doesn't want to be defined in terms of his sexuality. This is a truly refreshing outlook from an Indian film--which are usually in a rush to stereotype a character, to reduce them to their gender or sexuality. Further into the film, Deepu asks Siras whether the man he was with that night was his lover. Again, Siras, the poet, cringes and talks about how love is a profound, inexplicable emotion--and reducing it like that takes away the complexity of it. The way he verbalises these brilliant nuances so lucidly, so matter-of-factly, show how big a triumph this film is for Indian cinema.
Aligarh's poignancy lies in the little things. During an exchange of friendly banter with Siras, Deepu asks for a picture of them together. Once they take the picture, Siras smiles shyly and says, "I look so bad." But Deepu refutes this claim, and assures him that he is a "very handsome man"--at which Siras smiles wider and blushes. This scene humanises Siras so brilliantly. It shows us that this is a man who is like you and me, who will blush when someone calls him "handsome", who will find court proceedings "boring" and doze off in the midst of them, who will listen to Lata Mangeshkar songs in times of loneliness and sing along. When you see such an ordinary, innocuous man being thrust into violence and ostracism, you realise the mercilessness of prejudice.
The cinematography by Satya Rai Nagpaul is marvellous. It captures the claustrophobia of Siras's situation, right from his cramped apartments (which are perhaps symbolic of being in a closet), to the confines of the court where his case is being heard. How the events of that fateful night are shown is also very interesting, and the way it's shot often reinforces how blatant a breach of privacy the incident was.
Aligarh, while being about the brutal violence that society perpetrates upon people of alternate sexualities, is essentially the story of a man who craves to be loved, but is denied that because the love he wants is not socially acceptable. It exposes us to the harrowing truth of prejudice which exists in this country, but beyond that, it exposes how we as a people failed Professor Siras. May your spirit live on Siras, continuous and indefatigable, especially in these trying times.
This article was originally published here on Youth Ki Awaaz.
![]()
Like Us On Facebook |
![]()
Follow Us On Twitter |
![]()
Contact HuffPost India
Also see on HuffPost:
"Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code criminalizes 'unnatural' sex acts. This includes homosexuality," a message on the screen reminds you, before the movie even begins. On the surface, it seems like an obvious reminder--something nearly everyone knows by now--but once you're there, sitting in the darkness with only the above words blinking at you and then watch Professor Siras's story slowly unfold before you, you realise how real this reminder is, and how utterly terrifying.
The way Manoj Bajpayee brings out Siras's alienation, loneliness, despair, and yet a child-like optimism is something that is utterly beautiful to behold.
Aligarh (see the trailer here) takes us back to 2010, when a shy professor of Marathi at the Aligarh Muslim University was suspended and consequently slapped with a lawsuit simply because he was gay. On a night of loneliness, Professor Siras had sought company and passion with a young rickshaw-puller, but he was denied even this small moment of solace when a pair of journalists barged into his house, and with camera running harassed him and his partner. They had already filmed him having sex, and subsequently circulated that MMS. Following this shocking event, the university--instead of looking into this disturbing breach of privacy--had turned on Siras, branded him "immoral" and took legal action against him. It's scary that something like this happened only five years ago, and that too during a time when the Delhi High Court had freshly ruled Section 377 unconstitutional (In 2009). More than that, it was utterly horrifying how a completely innocent man was brutally persecuted, only because he loved another man.
Director Hansal Mehta, along with Manoj Bajpayee(who plays Siras) and Rajkummar Rao (who plays a young journalist eager to help Siras), bring this story to life with remarkable sensitivity. Bajpayee's performance is perhaps his best yet (and that's huge, because he is amazing in almost every film he's in), and the way he brings out the nuances within the character--Siras's alienation, loneliness, despair, and yet a child-like optimism is something that is utterly beautiful to behold. Indian cinema often slots its queer characters into strict boxes, making them seem like types more than people--but Aligarh completely changes that. The complexity of Siras's ordeal, of the emotions he experiences, is depicted with great depth, and not just that, the film also explores the meaning of being queer with never-seen-before maturity.
When you see such an ordinary, innocuous man being thrust into violence and ostracism, you realise the mercilessness of prejudice.
In one scene, Deepu (Rajkummar Rao) asks Siras quite candidly whether he is gay. Siras cringes and replies that calling him gay means restricting his identity within those three letters--it is, again, slotting and confining him into an inescapable box. This doesn't mean that he is denying that he is gay, just that he doesn't want to be defined in terms of his sexuality. This is a truly refreshing outlook from an Indian film--which are usually in a rush to stereotype a character, to reduce them to their gender or sexuality. Further into the film, Deepu asks Siras whether the man he was with that night was his lover. Again, Siras, the poet, cringes and talks about how love is a profound, inexplicable emotion--and reducing it like that takes away the complexity of it. The way he verbalises these brilliant nuances so lucidly, so matter-of-factly, show how big a triumph this film is for Indian cinema.
Aligarh's poignancy lies in the little things. During an exchange of friendly banter with Siras, Deepu asks for a picture of them together. Once they take the picture, Siras smiles shyly and says, "I look so bad." But Deepu refutes this claim, and assures him that he is a "very handsome man"--at which Siras smiles wider and blushes. This scene humanises Siras so brilliantly. It shows us that this is a man who is like you and me, who will blush when someone calls him "handsome", who will find court proceedings "boring" and doze off in the midst of them, who will listen to Lata Mangeshkar songs in times of loneliness and sing along. When you see such an ordinary, innocuous man being thrust into violence and ostracism, you realise the mercilessness of prejudice.
Aligarh is essentially the story of a man who craves to be loved, but is denied that because the love he wants is not socially acceptable.
The cinematography by Satya Rai Nagpaul is marvellous. It captures the claustrophobia of Siras's situation, right from his cramped apartments (which are perhaps symbolic of being in a closet), to the confines of the court where his case is being heard. How the events of that fateful night are shown is also very interesting, and the way it's shot often reinforces how blatant a breach of privacy the incident was.
Aligarh, while being about the brutal violence that society perpetrates upon people of alternate sexualities, is essentially the story of a man who craves to be loved, but is denied that because the love he wants is not socially acceptable. It exposes us to the harrowing truth of prejudice which exists in this country, but beyond that, it exposes how we as a people failed Professor Siras. May your spirit live on Siras, continuous and indefatigable, especially in these trying times.
This article was originally published here on Youth Ki Awaaz.
Like Us On Facebook | 
Follow Us On Twitter | 
Contact HuffPost IndiaAlso see on HuffPost: