Galaxy: International Multidisciplinary Research Journal

ISSN: 2278-9529  |  www.galaxyimrj.com

Abstract

Erotic and sexual representation in Indian postmodern cinema reflects a nuanced negotiation between desire, cultural norms, censorship, and evolving gender politics. Moving beyond the conventional romanticised imagery of earlier Bollywood, contemporary filmmakers explore complex depictions of intimacy, sexual identity, and power. Films such as The Dirty Picture (2011) and Lipstick Under My Burkha (2016) foreground female sexual desire while challenging patriarchal constraints, while Kapoor & Sons (2016) and Aligarh (2015) address LGBTQ+ identities with empathy and depth. Fire (1996) broke ground by portraying a lesbian relationship, and Margarita with a Straw (2014) explores the intersection of sexuality, disability, and queer identity. These works challenge heteronormative frameworks and reframe the traditional male gaze by introducing female and alternative gazes that grant characters, particularly women, sexual agency and subjectivity. Navigating the strictures of the Central Board of Film Certification, directors have long relied on metaphor, symbolic imagery, and the song sequence to convey eroticism within cultural constraints. Postmodern representation also expands erotic discourse beyond romance, engaging with exploitation (Parched, 2015), consent, and identity, revealing how sexuality operates as a site of both resistance and negotiation in a socially conservative milieu. While persistent taboos and moral policing continue to shape what can be shown, Indian postmodern cinema has emerged as a contested yet transformative space, one that reflects and influences ongoing shifts in societal attitudes toward gender, sexuality, and erotic expression.

Keywords

patriarchy censorship sexual identity representation eroticism male gaze

Article History

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How to Cite

Saikia, Chinmoyee. “Eroticism and Sexual Representation in Indian Postmodern Cinema: Negotiating Desire, Censorship, and the Gaze.” Galaxy: International Multidisciplinary Research Journal, vol. 15, no. 5, Sept. 2026, pp. 171–185. https://doi.org/10.66376/galaxy.v15.n5.10

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