Pakistan reverses morality ban on transgender romance film
- Nominated as Pakistan’s Oscars entry, the country’s information ministry issued a veto declaring Joyland ‘repugnant to the norms of decency and morality’
- The Central Board of Film Censors on Wednesday said ‘there is no hindrance from the board for its screening … distributors can screen the film from tomorrow’
A Pakistani film portraying romance between a married man and a transgender woman was cleared for domestic screenings on Wednesday, officials said, reversing a government ban forced by Islamist pressure.
Lauded by critics, awarded the Jury Prize at Cannes, and nominated as Pakistan’s entry for next year’s Academy Awards, the film Joyland was set to open in cinemas across the country on Friday.
But following objections from Islamist hardliners, Pakistan’s information ministry stepped in last week to issue a veto declaring the film “repugnant to the norms of decency and morality” and ordered a review by censors.
But Muhammad Tahir Hassan, head of the Central Board of Film Censors, told Agence France-Presse late on Wednesday that “there is no hindrance from the board for its screening”.
“The distributors can screen the film from tomorrow morning if they wish,” he added.
In arch-conservative Pakistan the rights of the transgender community are ostensibly enshrined in law.
However, under social stigma most are forced to live on the fringes of society, often resorting to begging, dancing at weddings or sex work for survival.
