Author Topic: 'Dunno Y', Bollywood Gay Romance, Hits Indian Theaters Amidst Controversy  (Read 11851 times)

Offline Aloysius J. Gleek

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/12/dunno-y-bollywood-gay-rom_n_782705.html



'Dunno Y...Na Jaane Kyun,'
Bollywood Gay Romance,
Hits Indian Theaters
Amidst Controversy (VIDEO)


The Huffington Post
By Curtis M. Wong
Posted: 11-12-10 11:19 AM


To watch BBC's full
report, which includes
scenes from the film,
click here:




It's been hailed by some critics as India's answer to "Brokeback Mountain," but not everyone is thrilled about "Dunno Y...Na Jaane Kyun," the first Bollywood film ever to explicitly portray a gay relationship.

According to the BBC, the movie focuses on a forbidden affair between two middle-class men in Mumbai. Shots of the two male actors in bed and passionately kissing, as well as shaving together in a bathroom, are among the more provocative segments.

Though homosexuality was de-criminalized in India last year, "Dunno Y...Na Jaane Kyun" was held up in the editing room since principal shooting completed seven months ago. Many insisted the more explicit scenes be cut, while star Kapil Sharma says he received threatening letters in the mail in the weeks leading up to its release.

And the movie, which hits Indian cinemas today, continues to divide potential audiences. "Practically the entire religious spectrum in India is united in its opposition to the celebration of homosexuality," John Dayal of the All India Christian Council told the BBC. "Not one of them says it's a good thing, a natural thing." The nation's legion of gay activists felt differently. "I definitely feel this film is going to encourage filmmakers to make more realistic films ... and bring about better understanding in the minds of the Indian audience," said activist Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil.
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Offline Aloysius J. Gleek

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Re: 'Dunno Y', Bollywood Gay Romance, Hits Indian Theaters Amidst Controversy
« Reply #1 on: November 13, 2010, 03:04:21 pm »




Where Dunno Y..  tries to take it further than just a furtive liason is in the way it shows the relationship between the two men: the married man nearly reaches the point of breaking off with his wife, but his lover refuses to let him.




http://www.indianexpress.com/news/dunno-y-na-jaane-kyun/710247/0




Dunno Y...
Na Jaane Kyun




by Shubhra Gupta
Posted: Fri Nov 12 2010, 14:30 hrs
Rating:**


The title should have been a dead giveaway of the kind of film Dunno Y.. Na Jaane Kyon  turns out to be: a good idea wrapped, and nearly hidden, in clunky execution. Every time something real struggles to come up, it is buried quickly under amateurish acting, or over-written plot points.

Gay persons are not bad people. They are who they are. This is the statement of a fact that can bear repeating in mainstream cinema, but not in the way Dunno Y..  ends up doing it. It takes a long time to get to the point. Till the interval, in fact, when we discover that a husband who neglects the woman he’s married to, is into men. He gets into an affair with an aspiring model-cum-actor who is “auditioning” (Bollywood euphemism for “sleeping with”) around town. Where Dunno Y..  tries to take it further than just a furtive liason is in the way it shows the relationship between the two men: the married man nearly reaches the point of breaking off with his wife, but his lover refuses to let him.

For a Hindi movie, this is way beyond anything that’s been shown in the homosexual range till now. Not just in the way the men show skin and suck lip, but in the feelings they share: these are people who want to live together, not just have illicit sex. But Dunno Y..  stops well short of being a desi My Beautiful Laundrette  or Brokeback Mountain because it doesn’t go the mile. Scared of putting off viewers, it balances the guy thing with a gal thing: the neglected wife is made to have a fling with the gay husband’s younger brother who has the hots for her. It also situates the gay man and his predicament in a much-too complicated Anglo-Indian family, which has an absconding father (Kabir Bedi), a still-youthful mother (Zeenat Aman in a comeback role which gets her to declaim rather than act most of the time) who submits to her lecherous boss because she wants the extras—not for herself, but for her family, which is acknowledged by her cantankerous ma-in-law (Helen) at a crucial moment.

You never quite feel like abandoning Dunno Y.. , but you also wish it had been braver and stuck to its core story. Some of the situations are not bad, though, even if the English used by the characters is unintentionally hilarious, and even if some of the physical stuff comes dangerously close to sleaze. Nice takeaway: Helen getting to do a graceful jig after she declares : after all, mujhse achcha kaun dance kar sakta hai.





Director: Sanjay Sharma

Cast: Aryan Vaid, Kapil Sharma, Maradona Rebello, Hazel, Zeenat Aman, Helen, Rituparna Sengupta

[email protected]
"Tu doives entendre je t'aime."
(and you know who I am...)


Cowboy Curtis (Laurence Fishburne)
and Pee-wee in the 1990 episode
"Camping Out"

Offline Aloysius J. Gleek

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"Tu doives entendre je t'aime."
(and you know who I am...)


Cowboy Curtis (Laurence Fishburne)
and Pee-wee in the 1990 episode
"Camping Out"

Offline Aloysius J. Gleek

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Re: 'Dunno Y', Bollywood Gay Romance, Hits Indian Theaters Amidst Controversy
« Reply #3 on: November 13, 2010, 03:27:10 pm »



[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaiF9Gh7TmA&feature[/youtube]
Zeenat Aman (the mother) explains about the film (1:25 - 2:40)

"Tu doives entendre je t'aime."
(and you know who I am...)


Cowboy Curtis (Laurence Fishburne)
and Pee-wee in the 1990 episode
"Camping Out"

Offline Aloysius J. Gleek

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Bollywood: 'Dunno Y… Na Jaane Kyun' India’s answer to Brokeback Mountain?
« Reply #4 on: November 13, 2010, 03:39:58 pm »


http://buzzg.com/entertainment/bollywood-dunno-y-na-jaane-kyun-indias-answer-to-brokeback-mountain.html



Entertainment
Bollywood:
Dunno Y…
Na Jaane Kyun

India’s answer to
Brokeback Mountain?


Published by Munna
January 23, 2010 at 7:22 am



In a rather bold move, producer Anil Sharma’s bilingual film Dunno Y… Na Jaane Kyun  is all set to be India’s answer to Brokeback Mountain.  To be directed by Sanjay Sharma, the film will be handling the subject of homesexuality. And, it will be made on serious note unlike the most Indian films made so far.

Sanjay Sharma doesn’t believe in being casual or bold about it as much as doing justice to the subject. The portrayal will be emotional and sensitive and will also have some rather graphic scenes between two male protagonists. However, it will all be done aesthetically and is not meant just for titillating or sensationalizing. The biggest wonder is that debutant Kapil Sharma would be one of those homesexual protagonists.

So isn’t he worried about being typecast since it’s his debut? No, he isn’t, because he feels Indian audience has matured by now to know that it is just a character that he is playing. What about being laughed at? The young gun is not bothered about that either as he knows that if one is different and takes a risk, brickbats come by as much as bouquets. Being a professional actor, Kapil has even done some kissing and love-making scenes since its all part of the job!

The film would be depicting the relationship between two men with as much honesty as a heterosexual relationship. Sanjay Sharna’s simple logic is, if it were a man and a woman, they would have shown it the way it is, so why not if it’s two men? Well, they have a lot of faith in Indian audience which has matured after the amendment in Section 377. So, this will be well-timed we guess.

-Sampurn Media
"Tu doives entendre je t'aime."
(and you know who I am...)


Cowboy Curtis (Laurence Fishburne)
and Pee-wee in the 1990 episode
"Camping Out"

Offline Sophia

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Re: 'Dunno Y', Bollywood Gay Romance, Hits Indian Theaters Amidst Controversy
« Reply #5 on: November 13, 2010, 05:58:00 pm »
sounds very interesting... i am looking forward of seeing it.  :)

Offline Shakesthecoffecan

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Re: 'Dunno Y', Bollywood Gay Romance, Hits Indian Theaters Amidst Controversy
« Reply #6 on: November 13, 2010, 06:39:09 pm »
It is wonderful to see these films embrace and point to Brokeback Mountain in their promotion. I hope that BBM has made it easier for these films to be made. I will add it to my queue.
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