Exclusive! Ridhi Dogra: We need to tell more same-sex love stories without tagging them

The actress highlights the need to normalise love stories of the LGBTQIA+ community in mainstream cinema

Ridhi Dogra

Ridhi Dogra starred in the same-sex love story Married Woman, and the sensitive portrayal of her well-written character was well received by audiences. With the world celebrating Pride Month, Ridhi says that it is time to normalise the stories of the LGBTQIA+ community without tagging them as such.

Ridhi, who recently appeared in the rom-com Badtameez Dil, told OTTplay, "I have been part of a show like Married Woman, which was widely accepted by the audience. I receive positive feedback for that show even today. I feel that such films should be made, but they should be done in the same way we treated Married Woman: with utmost sensitivity and dignity. The entire crew was sensitive, and the director, Sahir Raza, had a female AD, and when we shot intimate scenes, he would take suggestions from her and shoot those scenes in a close set so that we were comfortable. Such untold understanding from the director and crew members is much-needed when we make films on queer subjects."

Interestingly, Badtameez Dil shows a beautiful queer wedding.

"In the last few years, I have noticed a lot of content in which LGBTQIA+ characters are shown in a positive way and the stories are treated as regular. This is important. We need to tell stories of same-sex relationships just like heterosexual couples without giving them any tags. Normalcy needs to be practised without being spelled out. When the Supreme Court verdict on Article 377 came out a few years ago, my nephew, who was 4-years-old, picked up a newspaper, and we had a conversation about two men hugging each other and showing affection for each other. That is the kind of normalcy and inclusivity that these kids are growing up with," shared Ridhi.

The 10-episode series Badtameez Dil also stars Barun Sobti and is available to stream on Amazon miniTV.

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