Badnam Basti, arguably named as India’s first queer film, follows the lives of three main protagonists, all caught in a growing love triangle.

In this film we follow Sarnam, a truck driver who develops a relationship with Bansuri, a woman who he had previously rescued from an attack. Sarnam also begins to develop romantic feelings for Shivraj, a man who works in a temple.

The film was a key part of India’s New Wave cinema, which oversaw a number of queer and modernised stories portrayed. This event is part of the Barbican’s Queer 70s programme - films and bodies of work that reflect the social and political change for the queer community during this period.

The film will be screening in Cinema 1