{"product_id":"fire","title":"Fire","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eFire: A Queer Film Classic\u003c\/i\u003e delves into the controversial 1996 lesbian\r\nlove story by Indian-born director Deepa\r\nMehta. Set in a contemporary middle-class\r\nHindu household in the heart of Delhi, \u003ci\u003eFire\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of Radha and Sita, the wives of two\r\nbrothers, who fall in love with one another.\r\nCrisis overtakes the extended family when a\r\nservant discovers the relationship and tells one\r\nof the husbands; overcoming both a literal and\r\nallegorical \"trial by fire,\" the two women leave\r\ntheir marriages to make a life together.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\nThe film premiered to great acclaim in 1996, and travelled the international circuit before being\r\nfinally released in India in 1999. The consequences\r\nof the film's Indian premiere were both\r\nprofound and provocative: outraged by the film's\r\nexplicit depiction of a lesbian relationship, protesters went on a rampage, tearing down posters, vandalizing cinemas showing the film, and\r\ndisrupting screenings in Delhi and Bombay,\r\nsetting off a maelstrom of public discourse on\r\nissues such as homosexuality and freedom of\r\nspeech in India. Director Deepa Mehta and the\r\ntwo leading actresses were targeted for attack and\r\nharassment by extremists of the Hindu Right.\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003eThis book examines the controversy that divided a nation, but which ultimately led to counterprotests among the film's supporters, resulting in its successful and uninterrupted run in Indian theaters. The book also considers \u003ci\u003eFire\u003c\/i\u003e's scathing attack on both heterosexism and Hindu practices in India that oppress and marginalize women, as well as its revolutionary treatment of female characters, whose traditional duties are imbued with an unprecedented sensuality.\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eThe QUEER FILM CLASSICS series, begun in\r\n2009, consists of critical yet populist monographs\r\non classic films of interest to LGBT audiences\r\nwritten by esteemed film scholars and critics. The series is edited by authors Thomas Waugh (\u003ci\u003eOut\/Lines, Lust Unearthed\u003c\/i\u003e) and Matthew\r\nHays (\u003ci\u003eThe View from Here\u003c\/i\u003e). \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Shohini Ghosh","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback Trade paperback (US)","offer_id":44733305979173,"sku":"9781551523637","price":14.95,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0727\/7851\/4725\/products\/BNCImageAPI_e57a948f-2381-4857-9c60-cb3459ca6102.jpg?v=1679346664","url":"https:\/\/crossandcrows.myshopify.com\/products\/fire","provider":"Cross \u0026 Crows Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}