Holy Curse

Teenage Radha is on a road trip to self-discovery. Only the trip is not a voluntary one: Radha is forced by their family to get cured of the perceived deviances; a conversion therapy of sorts. Director Snigdha Kapoor tells it straight but with a lot of affection for the protagonist and their rebellion against the family, its conservatism, and limited perception of gender roles.

Teenage Radha is on a road trip to self-discovery. Only the trip is not a voluntary one: Radha is forced by their family to get cured of the perceived deviances; a conversion therapy of sorts. Director Snigdha Kapoor tells it straight but with a lot of affection for the protagonist and their rebellion against the family, its conservatism, and limited perception of gender roles. There isn’t just a denial of queerness but an outright disregard of it as something abnormal. With the odds stacked against them, Radha must figure out their own identity and impulses while inhabiting a gender-fluid space. An unforeseen ally turns out to be the cousin who they are otherwise daggers drawn with. A talented ensemble of seasoned performers powers the film, including Anup Soni (Crime Patrol) who evokes just the right amount of fear and revulsion as the traditionalist uncle. But it is Mrunal Kashid who owns the film in the lead – baffled by the world around them yet aware of their own self, vulnerable yet no pushover.