Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): I was told that the MP police wouldn't guarantee my safety. This is what film-maker Onir Dhar said after his talk session on, Making Literature LGBTQ Neutral, was cancelled following protest threats.
Dhar was to hold a talk session on - Making Literature LGBTQ Neutral. It was cancelled by the organisers who were told by the state government that it might cause protest and might pose threat to Dhar’s life.
When asked about his reaction on cancellation of his session, he said, "If the issue is only the topic, then why only my session was called off? How can someone anonymously call up the organisers and they cancel the event?" I was informed that the police couldn’t guarantee my safety.”
When asked about organisers getting verbal communication from the state government to cancel the session, he said, "How can state government object to an individual artiste coming and discussing LGBTQ in literature?”
Appeal to CM
The film-maker has appealed to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan that state government should organise an event where he can talk about queer crafts and literature to indicate that he was not against LGBTQ community and state government did not support anonymous violent protesters.
