Cinema, as both an art form and a cultural artifact, represents the complexities and intricacies of desire. In the linguistic, social and cultural plentitude of South Asia, cinema serves both as a mirror reflecting societal desires and norms, and as a medium that actively shapes and constructs them. In the fourth edition of Qurbatein, we delve into the intricate relationship between popular culture, fantasy and desire that emerges in the kaleidoscopic background of the subcontinent. Is cinema in the subcontinent a product of desire, or does it produce desire? What is the role of representation and identification in relation to film? Why are we drawn to witnessing the desires of others unfold on screen? Is there something perverted in our pursuit of seeing? What are the horrors and the pleasures of seeing desire on-screen? How do repressed, forbidden and tabooed desires find a vocabulary through cinema?

We are also intrigued by the ideological underpinnings of cinema. How does it find its footing within the political framework of South Asia? In what ways do subaltern movements of desire appropriate this medium to construct narratives? Can cinema be wielded as a tool for shaping cultural hegemonies and desires through propaganda? Moreover, what truly constitutes ‘reality’ on screen?