An odyssey of films ft the LGBTQ+ community, you cannot miss

Over the years, gay presence in Hindi cinema has grown significantly particularly on OTT. Check out seven incredible LGBTQ films on Netflix that are well worth your time.

1. Margarita With A Straw

One of the most poignant depictions of a lady with cerebral palsy examining her identity, sexuality, and independence is Margarita With A Straw. Sayani Gupta’s Khanum, a blind activist, is portrayed by Kalki Koechlin as Laila, a young woman who travels from India to New York for academic purposes. Their friendship soon develops into love.

2. Time Out

A coming-of-age movie called Time Out explores the subject of sibling relationships and the consequences of learning about a family member’s sexual orientation. Two brothers, Mihir (Chirag Malhotra) and Gaurav (Pranay Pachauri), are central characters to the story. Mihir’s life is distorted by Gaurav’s coming out as gay, and he is forced to face his own biases and feelings.

3. Do Paise Ki Dhoop, Chaar Aane Ki Baarish

This nontraditional LGBTQ+ play is directed by ace actor Deepti Naval. The film chronicles the tale of struggling musician Juhi (Manisha Koirala) and her disabled son Kaku. She meets Debu (Rajit Kapoor), a gay lyricist who is coping with his own inner turmoil following his  breakup.

4. Badhaai Do

The comedy-drama Badhaai Do centers on the idea of a lavender marriage, or a marriage of convenience between a lesbian and a gay guy named Shardul (Rajkummar Rao) (Bhumi Pednekar). Originating from conventional Indian households, the two protagonists choose to wed while discreetly carrying on their own relationships in order to elude social pressure and shame.

5. Cobalt Blue

Based on Sachin Kundalkar’s book of the same name, Cobalt Blue is an aesthetically spectacular movie. Prateik Babbar plays a man who both a brother and a sister fall in love with in the film. Within the framework of LGBTQ+ relationships, the movie examines themes of desire, identity, and heartbreak.

6. Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga

Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga set a new precedent as one of the first popular Bollywood movies to center on a lesbian romance. The movie centers on Sweety (Sonam Kapoor), who faces difficulties in telling her traditional Punjabi family that she is in love with someone else. Sahil, a dramatist who assists Sweety in telling her story to her family, is played by Rajkummar Rao.

7. Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui

In a commercial Bollywood genre, Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui addresses the touchy subject of transsexual identity. The movie is about Manu (Ayushmann Khurrana), a bodybuilder, who falls in love with Maanvi (Vaani Kapoor) and later finds out she is a transgender woman.