Experiencing Interruptions?

Blue Sunshine

Recognition:
Winner - Best Feature Jury Award - Tasveer South Asian Film Festival - Oct 2023;
Official Selection - International Film Festival of India - Nov 2023;
Official Selection - Glasgow Film Festival - March 2024;

Synopsis:
Aravind, a high school teacher, wants to transition from male to female while working for a school in a small town in South India. Aravind’s parents do not know that Aravind is already taking
hormone treatment for the transition. When his parents force a marriage upon him due to their financial situation, Aravind gains courage under pressure. He starts to live as a woman named Bhanu with his friend Haritha's help. The school administration creates problems by not acknowledging Bhanu as a woman. As Bhanu struggles to find happiness after transition, she meets a student Karthik who is being bullied by his classmates for his feminine demeanor. Unable to withstand the bullying, Karthik retaliates by wearing makeup and nail polish to school. The school administration blames Bhanu for all the problems. How Karthik and Bhanu deal with the problems form the rest of the story.

  • Samyuktha Vijayan
    Director
  • Samyuktha Vijayan
    Writer
  • Samyuktha Vijayan
    Producer
  • Samyuktha Vijayan
    Key Cast
    "Aravind/Bhanu"
  • Haritha
    Key Cast
    "Haritha"
  • Geetha Kailasam
    Key Cast
    "Lakshmi"
  • Gajaraj
    Key Cast
    "Nagaraj"
  • Masanth Natarajan
    Key Cast
    "Karthik"
  • Manimegalai
    Key Cast
    "Nancy (Vice principal)"
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 38 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    April 30, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    98,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    India
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Language:
    Tamil
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Samyuktha Vijayan

Samyuktha Vijayan is a dancer and techie who also happens to be a transgender woman. Growing up as a boy in a small town in Tamil Nadu, Samyuktha was a school and college topper. While working for a MNC in USA, Samyuktha transitioned from male to female. And since then, she is actively working with the transgender community to highlight their struggles and help them secure mainstream jobs. Samyuktha was also the founder of Toutestudio, a made-to-rent wedding couture boutique in which she trained and employed transwomen. Samyuktha was conferred with the Top Ten Youth award of Tamil Nadu for the year 2019 by Ananda Vikatan, a famous magazine. Samyuktha was the first transgender employee to lead a senior position at Swiggy. Currently she lives and works in San Francisco, USA.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

As someone who always knew I was a girl at heart, my childhood was filled with mockery and humiliation at school and from my relatives. But I had supportive parents who stood with me through my transition. I knew the only way to lead a dignified life was to be unfazed and courageous. But not everyone has that luxury and support. I have heard many horror stories from fellow transgender people. Inspired by the many stories I heard and reflecting on the many events from my own personal life, I decided to write, direct, produce and act in a movie about the daily struggles faced by a transwoman working as a teacher in a conservative school in a small town. With this movie, I hope to create a healthy debate in our society about the societal and infrastructural changes needed to help transwomen perform mainstream jobs and lead a dignified life.