The Politics and Aesthetics of Male Homosexuality in Malayalam Cinema

Contextualizing the Film Ka Bodyscapes (2016)

Bibliographic Data

ID3655911
AuthorsSooraj (0000-0002-8812-5187, Indian Institute of Technology BHU), S S Sooraj (Banaras Hindu University), K R Kavya Krishna (0000-0002-6861-1137, Indian Institute of Technology BHU)
Year2025
Volume72
Issue2
Pages362-385
Publication date2025-01-28
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Homosexuality (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0091-8369 • E-ISSN: 1540-3602
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00918369.2024.2321232
PMID38564428
OpenAlexW4393408210
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited41

Focusing on the Malayalam film Ka Bodyscapes (2016), this article attempts to historically trace and critically engage with the representations of gay sexuality in Malayalam cinema from the South Indian state of Kerala. It interrogates how Ka Bodyscapes brought to the forefront hitherto unexplored visual dynamics of the gay male body and homoeroticism on screen while troubling the heterosexual dynamics of the Malayalam film industry. By situating this film within the history of representation of male homosexuality in Malayalam cinema and the changing regimes of queer politics and feminist interventions in Kerala in the last decade, the article argues how the film's radical visual representation of gay sexuality at the intersection of caste and religion problematizes the heterosexual family/state, thereby challenging the patriarchal masculinity that marginalizes women and sexual minorities in Kerala

Aesthetics · Art · Caste · Homosexuality · Human sexuality · Malayalam · Masculinity · Movie theater · Political science · Politics · Queer · Sociology · Visual arts · African Sexualities and LGBTQ+ Issues · Cinema and Media Studies · Gender Studies · Law · Philosophy · South Asian Cinema and Culture

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