Cactus Pears

When you know something is “right” for you, it’s difficult to deny it, even when faced with societal pressures to the contrary. It’s a circumstance that same-sex couples in particular have been well acquainted with for a long time. And, even though prevailing conditions have significantly improved in many quarters in recent years, there are still some notably conservative locales where freely living one’s truth can be exceedingly challenging. Which is why it’s truly groundbreaking when a film from one of those conventionally minded enclaves comes along to shake up the status quo and leave a lasting impact. Such is the case for the debut feature from writer-director Rohan Kanawade, a truly pioneering work of LGBTQ+ cinema from India, a culture not particularly known for its open-mindedness when it comes to alternative lifestyle matters. When thirty-something Anand (Bhushaan Manoj) learns that his father (Nitin Bansode) has died, he must accompany his mother (Jayshri Jagtap) to the rural Indian village where he and they grew up for the deceased’s traditional funeral rituals. As a gay man who relocated from there to Mumbai so that he could more freely live openly, he’s apprehensive about returning to the oppressive environment he so eagerly sought to escape. In part it’s because he grew tired of the constant barrage of questions asked by the locals about when he was going to get married, inquiries that he always managed to deflect but that he knew he would have difficulty addressing this time given his age and still being a bachelor. What’s more, the funeral rites are scheduled to span 10 days, a longer duration than he wants to stay in the village, despite his earnest desire to pay proper respects to his late father. Fortunately for Anand, he had already come out to both of his parents, and they were warmly accepting of his lifestyle, so he knows that his immediate family will not pose any hardships for him in making this journey. But that loving support still will no...