At least 45 LGBTQ+ films that screened at Mumbai’s Kashish Pride Film Festival in the past 15 years will be available to stream on OTT during Pride Month, the organisers said on Tuesday.

The organisers have tied up with OTT platforms like MX Player, LesFlicks and GagaOolala to stream films including Devi (2017), Shot (2014), Begum Parvathi (2021) and Baby Steps (2017) as part of the initiative.

The films will be available on a pay-per-view basis, where once a film is rented, it can be played for the next 48 hours. They can be watched anywhere in the world.

“There have been several enquiries from audiences across India and globally as to where they can access Indian LGBTQ+ films. So we have created this LGBTQ+ OTT platform where people across the world can watch some of the best Indian LGBTQ+ films that have played at Kashish over the years. We are in the process of adding more titles,” festival director Sridhar Rangayan said.

Critically acclaimed films, including Yours Emotionally starring Pratik Gandhi, and Evening Shadows starring Mona Ambegaonkar and Ananth Mahadevan, will be available to rent. Additionally, the National Award-winning documentary Breaking Free by Sridhar Rangayan is available as part of the initiative.

The 16th edition of Kashish Pride Film Festival, which is set to begin on June 4 at St. Andrews Auditorium, will open with Daniel Craig’s 2024 film Queer.

The month of June is observed as Pride Month to celebrate LGBTQ+ pride and rights.

Some of the notable films selected for the festival include Shyam Benegal’s Mandi, Onir’s We Are Faheem & Karun, Dutch film Out and Odd Fish.

Films including Deborah Alice Craig’s Sally!, Mikko Mäkelä’s Sebastian, Patricia Ryczko’s Reset, and Marcelo Caetano’s Baby are the other top picks in the international category at the festival. The festival will conclude on June 8.