"Pride Month 2024: 5 young LGBTQIA+ change-makers on GQ India’s radar. Varsha and Asawari - Co-founders at trans-led film production company Star Hopper"

"Winning Gold in The Drum Awards for Marketing APAC’s Disruption, Social Purpose, Charity or Not for Profit, and Grand Prix categories is Disney Star India’s Words of Pride - Reclaiming Respect with Language campaign. Here is the award-winning case study."

"Words Of Pride campaign has secured the prestigious Zee Equality Award at 202 Kyoorius Creative Awards. The Purple Elephant recognises and rewards work that has addressed and impacted gender inequality in India through innovative thinking."

"Words Of Pride wins a Merit at  the 2024 One Show."

"Words Of Pride wins a Silver and Bronze at the Spikes Asia Awards, and also stood out with a Spike Glass nomination, marking us as the sole contender from India in this category."

"Trans and nonbinary filmmaker Varsha Panikar shares what it is like to be a queer artist, and why LGBTQIA+ representation in mainstream art matters."

"Star Hopper, makes content related to LGBTQ+ community. Our stories are focused on creating an open space for people,  to engage and thrive within the narratives, says Asawari Jagushte."

"Not all intimacy is erotic or romantic. There is also intimacy in thinking together, and creating together, which emerges from the same source as love and desire. The approach to the film was just that – intimate and collaborative."

"Rooted in the core mission of the campaign, it squarely confronts historical biases perpetuated by the continued misuse of language. With a strong emphasis on advocacy, the campaign strives to reintroduce and promote respectful terminology within Indian languages, unveiling a rich linguistic heritage that aligns harmoniously with contemporary progressive values."

"Disney Star has launched a website which hosts a lexicon of respectful words to address the LGBTQIA+ community."

"This effort involved 150 linguists, experts, queer groups, and allies who invested 30 months of research and 7000 hours of collaboration."

"Confronting the normative manner in which sexuality is discussed in Indian culture, Bodies Of Desire established desire as world-making, world-protecting - as a space in which we reach not just for nearby bodies but for a future which if we permit ourselves to imagine, can be located in the present."

"Intimacy amongst lovers, holds immense political power and we wanted to use it as a language to resist the bias and stereotypes that continue to segregate our society, and start a dialogue about gender, sexuality, identity and representation, says Varsha."

"Panikar and Jagushte, from Star Hopper, reason that as queer artists, they’re keen on showcasing stories of queer and marginalised art-makers from a gaze that captures the complexity of their lives. "While this isn’t, strictly speaking, a queer film, it is a story of and by queer folks, and we need to see more and more of that in the public discourse," they sign off".

"Asawari is one of the Direction Jury for the esteemed D&AD Awards 2021 & 2022 (UK). D&AD awards are the most prestigious benchmark for creative excellence in Design and Advertising."

"Sitting at the confluence of identity, attachment, belonging, and more, After So Long // बरसों बाद is magic in the form of visual poetry. Varsha’s wondrous vision gives the poetry body, and allows it to be its own being."

"Host Suryatapa Mukherjee spoke to trans filmmakers Varsha and Asawari, who started Star Hopper, a great example of queer people creating opportunities for themselves on Pride & Prejudice Podcast."

"Reminding audiences that love is still a human right, the five films that will be available to watch on free YouTube from 17-28 March have now been revealed, with stories from India, Spain, Sweden, the USA and the UK all set to be showcased."

"The biggest question that Bodies of Desire answers, is, that intimacy is not limited to sex; sex is a secondary part of intimacy. One does not even have to be fully naked to experience an overwhelming sense of intimacy. One does not even have to be with someone to find intimacy and desire burning in their core."

"Queer or marginalised filmmakers and their stories are often boxed in what we call the ‘niche’. we are working towards creating an alternative industry where queer, underrepresented works become the prowess of contemporary Indian culture. And slowly you shift your gaze from what is ‘niche’ to what can be mainstream."- Asawari Jagushte, the producer behind Bodies of Desire."

"This film is a worldwide collaboration among trans and queer south-Asian artists from the United States, India and Canada. It was recorded, shot and filmed during the lockdown of 2020 and 2021."

"It’s a reconstruction of memories, lived experiences & nostalgia that brings together a generation, says Asawari"

"The film has been shortlisted in one of the world’s most prestigious, Berlin Commercial 2020’s Cultural Impact category. What makes Bodies of Desire beautiful is the fact that it is intimate yet never intrusive. It flows subtly yet hits right in the deepest core of the heart. A solemn play of light, shadow, and all that’s there in between, this one-of-its-kind film reintroduces us to ourselves as we find ourselves enveloped in memories evoked by the slight touches, the nimble kisses, and the tight yet freeing embraces."

"Activating at some of our creators’ and audiences’ venue favorites like the DGA, Hollywood Forever, the Orpheum and REDCAT in DTLA, we hope brings all the ‘feels’ everyone is ready for. We can’t wait for everyone to see the festival we have curated – I believe the slate of programming not only meets the moment but distinctly presents the work of some of the most talent contemporaries in queer cinema.
- Outfest Executive Director, Damien S. Navarro."
 

"Suryatapa and Navdeep from the Bi Collective Delhi talk to non-binary filmmaker Varsha Panikar about their short film Bodies of Desire as part of British Council's Five Films for Freedom, an annual program featuring five LGBTQI interest films curated by BFI Flare."

"Varsha Panikar joins the list of 100 women and non-binary filmmakers from 2021 with their film, Bodies of Desire which was screened at BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival."

"Originally released on NOWNESS Asia, Bodies of Desire forms part of Five Films For Freedom, the world’s largest LGBTIQ+ digital campaign.The event returns for its seventh edition this year, reminding audiences that "love is still a human right." 

"Queer short film ‘Bodies of Desire’ delves into themes of intimacy, identity."

"The 23-minute film looks beyond traditional rep­resentation and seeks to examine the inner lives of those less thought of so that it might hold up a mirror to society. With a feeling that is ancient, the treat­ment of the film is contemporary. “I hope we have managed to create a world that looks through the  lensof the oppressed, in a language that is personal to us. And I hopet he film raises the same emotions that we felt while making it,” Asawari states."

"Over 15 million people from more than 200 countries have viewed the Five Films For Freedom programme since its launch in 2015. This continues to include online engagement in countries where homosexuality can be prosecuted and, in some cases, be punishable by death. Especially for Indian audiences, the Five Films were also streamed on Jio Cinema, one of India’s leading video-on-demand streaming services. This year, the campaign further addressed the language barrier typically associated with international content, by providing subtitles in local languages such as Hindi."

"Panikar told this diarist that the film — an intimate portrayal of gender, sexual identity, desire, care and camaraderie — has now won the Special Jury Award for the best international short film category at Rio Festival De Cinema LGBTQiA+"

"The FIVE FILMS FOR FREEDOM campaign has been going since 2015 and over 15 million people from more than 200 countries have engaged with it particularly in places where homosexuality can be prosecuted and, in some cases, punishable by death."

"Excited about an Indian film being part of the line-up this year, Kennedy added, "It will take the perspective of the Indian LGBTIQ+ individuals to global audiences and connect them with people across borders. The range of emotions across this year’s line-up underlines the need for more love and togetherness in the world."

"Overall, through its poetry and music, the film serves as a defiant meditation on cross border solidarity amongst queer South-Asian artists from India, the United States and Canada."

"Almass Badat speaks with creators ofBodies of Desire, celbrating brown bodies."

"Experimental filmmaker Asawari is unapologetically shaking up Bollywood by showing unseen stories. Asawari talks about redefining Indian Cinema in this podcast with Almass, Aaron and Rueben."

"In a candid conversation with Miathalee from Nazariya QFRG regarding Bodies Of Desire. Discussed multi-media art, queer activism, importance of representation, and platforms like #FiveFilmsForFreedom."