Padmaavat is not homophobic, says filmmaker Onir

Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmaavat is a lot of things — anti-national, hurtful to Rajput sentiments, a disgrace to Rani Padmini and her honour, as the Karni Sena would like you to believe — but the one thing it is not is homophobic.

Yet, in the race to belt out opinion pieces after opinion pieces that bring something hatke to the table than the last 50 already written articles about Padmaavat, some accused it of being so. 

India's only openly gay director, Onir, however, feels this commentary on the magnum opus is as baseless as all of the other claims about it. 

"See, Sanjay could have easily left this portion out of the film, and it, perhaps, wouldn't make that much of a difference to the larger plot. But he didn't," points out Onir as T2 Online connects with the busy director over phone, in between media interactions for his upcoming film, Kuch Bheege Alfaaz. 

"Indian cinema seldom manages to portray bisexuality or homosexuality without making a caricature out of it. But the nuance with which Ranveer Singh (Alauddin Khilji) and Jim Sarbh (Malik Kafur) portrayed these less-explored emotions, is commendable," adds Onir, praising their dedication. This, coming from the man behind My Brother Nikhil and Shab, who's always been particularly vocal about gay and lesbian rights, is nothing short of an award in itself. "If SLB had the eye for detail, Ranveer and Jim had the heart to feel it," says Onir.

The director is currently busy with his next, Kuch Bheege Alfaz, starring Geetanjali Thapa and debutante actor Zain Khan Durrani, set to release this Valentine's Day. 

Read more: 

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