Is Joyland promoting LGBTQ in Pakistan?
The internationally acclaimed film Joyland is facing severe backlash from Pakistanis because people think it is promoting the agenda of homosexuality.
Joyland is a fictional story set in Lahore about a middle-class family in which a wheelchair-bound yet severe patriarch rules over his two sons and daughters-in-law. He wants his sons to give him grandchildren, but everything changes when his younger son, Haider, falls in love with Biba, a transgender dancer played by Alina Khan, while working as a background dancer for her.
Pakistanis are raising their serious concern on the topic of the film and also pointed out that the Queer Palm award “is an independently sponsored prize for selected LGBT-relevant films entered into the Cannes Film Festival”.
Recently, Noble Peace Prize laureate Malala also joined Pakistan’s Oscars submission film Joyland’s team as an executive producer. Pointing out this move, famous journalist and analyst Oyra Jan Maqbool shared his thoughts on Twitter.
He wrote, “The western world came into the fray to promote the Pakistani film Joyland based on homosexuality. The beginning of efforts for the Oscar award. Malala Yousafzai appointed executive producer. There is someone who raises his voice not in the name of Allah but in the name of morality and modesty”.
The debate has started on Twitter and a lot of Pakistanis want to ban the film in Pakistan because it is based on anti_ Islamic concepts and promotes homosexuality.
Whereas, Joyland’s director and one of the lead actress Sarwat Gilani shared that film is not completely about trans woman but also highlighted the issues faced by women in our society.
Saim Sadiq, the director of the film Joyland also announced that the film is all set to release on November 18 in Pakistan. The cast of the film includes Sania Saeed, Trans actress Alina Khan, Sarwat Gillani and Ali Junejo.
