A scheduled talk by filmmaker Onir at a literature festival in Bhopal was cancelled at the eleventh hour, allegedly because a group threatened to protest his presence. Onir, one of the most heard gay rights voices in India and abroad, was due to speak on ‘Making Literature LGBTQ Neutral’ on 13th January, the opening day of the festival. Onir, who said, the talk was arbitrarily cancelled, tweeted: “Apparently, there was a group threatening protest and violence, and police told the organisers that they cannot guarantee my safety.”
Onir was hurt that the organisers did not even care to call him to inform him about the cancellation of his session. Said Onir, “On Thursday (12th January), I got a text from the travel agent that my ticket had been cancelled. When I called the lit fest organisers to know what was going on, I was told that they were planning to text me, whatever that means. It was very unprofessional.” According to festival director Raghav Chandra, “We were told through various sources that there was a threat to Onir’s life and safety. For us, our author’s safety is the top priority.”