Guwahati has been witness to three pride parades since 2014 and the number of participants have soared each year. Now, the city of Silchar will also be hosting a 1 day LGBTQ film festival on 28th February.The film festival is being organised by XUKIA, a queer collective based in Assam, in collaboration with The Humsafar Trust.

XUKIA, which started its work in Guwahati, has since since expanded itself to another valley in south Assam close to the borders of Bangladesh called Barak Valley, in Silchar.

The film festival will be held on Feb 28th at Gandhi Bhawan, in Barak Valley, Silchar, and will screen films including documentaries and short movies. The film screening will then be followed by a panel discussion. The film festival aims to create a space for the people facing violence on a daily basis because of their sexuality and sexual behaviour, and hopes to make Assam queer friendly as the people of the state are marginalised not only sexually, but also geographically.

This post has been updated on 28th Feb to correct some factual errors

Sukhdeep Singh