Filmmaker Keith Gomes’ short film Dear Men released on YouTube yesterday. The movie is based on real events about a person who rescues two minor girls trafficked into sex trade. It stars Sayani Gupta in the lead along with Gyan Prakash and Mayukh Ray.
EXCLUSIVE: Keith Gomes on his film on sex trade Dear Men, “Many people don’t know that Anti-Trafficking Bill is yet to be passed in the Parliament”
In an exclusive conversation with Bollywood Hungama, Gomes said that the film was inspired from the real events he came to know from his friend Dipesh Tank, who has been fighting against child trafficking. It all started during COVID-19 when Gomes wanted to make a documentary on a tribe that celebrates the girl child only because by the age of 9 or 11 when she hits puberty, they sell her to the highest bidder. It was then that he came to know about a real rescue carried out by Dipesh.
“Rescuers risks their lives,” said Gomes. “This story came about because during one of his rescues, he pretended to be a Bollywood director. The real video is very scary. It highlights rescue workers who go out there and risk everything, including their lives. Their family could also be harmed. It’s a multi-billion-dollar trade. It’s sometimes run by some of the most powerful people in the world. If you see these paedophiles, rapists or molesters, they sometimes come across as the nicest and sweetest people in our society. It’s not written that they are paedophiles.”
Dear Men also speaks Anti-Trafficking Bill, about which a lot of people are unaware. “So many people do not know that the Anti-Trafficking Bill is pending and yet to be passed in the Parliament,” said the filmmaker. “Most traffickers come out on bail immediately and they threaten the victim. So, statements are retracted. They do not get justice. Their rehabilitation is a tough task because society doesn’t take them in again.”
Dear Men sees Sayani impersonate a male filmmaker, who goes out to rescue girls from sex trafficking. “Sayani and me worked together in Shameless,” said Gomes. “I was introduced to her through Hussain Dalal. She is a fabulous actor, as we all know. She is extremely passionate and vocal about causes. Her heart is in the right place. I just picked up the phone and told her I am doing this film and she was on it. There was not even a question of who, where and what. It became a challenge for her because she has to play a man in the film.”
When asked about keeping the title of the film as Dear Men, Gomes said, “It just came naturally while I was researching the videos I watched of girls being forced into prostitution. It’s terrifying if you see them. There are a large percentage of men who do this. I am used to saying ‘Dear’ and ‘Darling’ to everybody. It’s a call out, ‘Dear men, please stop trafficking, please be vigilant, protect our children’,” he said.
Keith Gomes revealed that he has received good wishes for Dear Men from a number of prominent people from the film industry like Riteish Deshmukh, Himesh Reshammiya, Johnny Lever, Sajid Nadiadwala, Wardha Nadiadwala, etc.
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