Farooki, Rubaiyat to attend ‘M3: Man, Male, Masculine’ 

Celebrated Bangladeshi filmmakers Mostofa Sarwar Farooki and Rubaiyat Hossain will participate in a panel discussion as part of the two-day online international conference titled ‘M3: Man, Male, Masculine’ starting today. 

 ‘Performing Masculinity’ will be discussed tomorrow at 7:30pm (BST) within the realm of contemporary South Asian Cinema. Moderated by film curator and journalist Meenakshi Shedde, the panel discussion will also include filmmakers Mostofa Sarwar Farooki and Rubaiyat Hossain from Bangladesh and filmmaker Devashish Makhija and actress Tillotama Shome from India.  

 The discussion intends to explore how differently roles are written for men and women actors. It will also look at how differently men and women are directed and treated on the set, gender disparity in pay scales for actors, as well as directors. Exploring childhood events that may have shaped them into the people they are today and how often men watch films directed by women.

 Presented by Goethe-Institutes in Bangladesh and India, the online international conference ‘M3: Man, Male, Masculine’ is a South-Asian regional project on the theme of Masculinities. The project aims to discuss current visions of masculinity across the gender spectrum in Bangladesh and India. It explores the current visions on masculinities across the gender spectrum through various discursive, cultural, and educational activities.​ The international conference will bring together intellectual and cultural perspectives from experts and artists from South Asia and Europe on the theme of masculinities.

The idea is to provide, through various perspectives and formats, a chance to not only develop an understanding of stereotypes and role models, but also reflect on individual perceptions of masculinity. The focuses on masculinities in general with a particular emphasis on the prevailing scenario in Bangladesh and India.

The speakers at the event include Urvashi Butalia (Feminist Researcher & Writer, New Delhi), Florian Fischer (freelance Consultant on Social Issues, Germany), Meena Kandaswamy (anti-caste activist, novelist, India), Michael Meuser (Professor of Sociology, Dortmund University), Sumathi Ramaswamy (Professor of History, Duke University, USA), and more.

The participants of the event also include Aditi Mittal (writer, comedian, actor, India), Anamika Joshi (Spoken-word artist, India), Mandeep Raikhy (Dance practitioner and choreographer, India), Susanne Sachsse (actress, Berlin Germany), and Kerstin Rickermann and Silke Beller (Filmmakers Germany), among others.