Onir book
I Am Onir and I Am Gay
‘Equality is non-negotiable,’ says the epigraph of filmmaker Onir’s recently released memoir, I Am Onir and I Am Gay. Expanding on the epigraph’s purpose, he tells me, ‘During the controversy regarding the rejection of my film on a gay Major, so many people told me to just be happy with what I had and not push the matter further. The epigraph is about asking why anyone should limit their happiness. Why does anyone feel entitled to tell me how much happiness I should feel? Everyone deserves to pursue as much happiness as they want and do whatever they want.’ The memoir, written in collaboration with his sister Irene Dhar Malik, is thus not just a memoir, it is a triumphant book for empowering those from the queer community and be a guiding force.
More excerpts from our conversation with the filmmaker follow:
Why did you choose to write a memoir and not make a film about your life?I was actually in talks to write a different book some years ago when Kanishka Gupta told me that I should pen down my experiences in a
Onir on his book I Am Onir and I am Gay: ‘I hope to empower the LGBTQ community’
National Award-winning filmmaker Onir, whose directorial debut, My Brother Nikhil, broke new ground in LGBT representation on the silver screen, has penned down his memoir titled ‘ I Am Onir and I Am Gay’. Laying bare the struggles and triumphs, the memoir offers readers a rare glimpse of Onir ’s life — his childhood days in Bhutan to when he was a young gentleman with no connections in the Hindi film industry, and later, when he faced “turbulent times” including difficult conversations about identity and resilience.
The book, published under Penguin’s Viking imprint, is co-written by Onir and his sister, film editor-screenwriter Irene Dhar Malik. It will be out on June In an interview with Firstpost, the filmmaker talks about the idea behind the memoir, the representation of LGBTQI+ in society, and if the perception has changed for good.
When did you decide to document this memoir?
It happened accidentally and was not something I had planned. I was discussing with my agent, Kanishka the rights t
I Am Onir and I Am Gay: A Memoir
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| Author: | Onir and Irene Dhar Malik |
| ISBN | |
| Binding: | Hardbound |
| Language: | English |
| Year: | |
| Subject: | Biography and Autobiography |
About the Book
The award-winning filmmaker Onir, whose directorial debut, My Brother Nikhil (), broke new ground in LGBT representation on the Indian silver screen, opens up fully for the first occasion. From his childhood days in Bhutan to when he was a young man with no connections in the Hindi film industry who dreamt big and fought to carve a niche for himself, Onir takes the reader through his struggles and triumphs to offer an intimate glimpse of his fascinating journey to success. Now one of the few openly gay directors in Bollywood, Onir remains fearless about his identity and adj about his role as a filmmaker in opening up the road to difficult conversations about identity and resilience. I Am Onir and I Am Gay is a raw, eloquent and inspiring memoir about confronting and transcending frontiers. Written with his sister Irene Dhar Malik, this emotionally gritty and unabashedly hon
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