Mumbai Designer Wins KASHISH 2021 Wendell Rodricks Poster Design Contest

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The winner for the KASHISH 2021 Wendell Rodricks Poster Design Contest for the 12th KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival was revealed today - Mumbai based graphic designer Ajoy Kumar Das was picked the winner by Jérôme Marrel, husband of late Wendell Rodricks, who was the jury member. This is the second time Ajoy Kumar Das is winning the coveted contest, having won it in 2016.

Jérôme Marrel said about why he chose this winner, "I have picked this design as the winning design as it is very minimal, but carries the message clearly. Wendell was the guru of minimalism in fashion so it carries forward his legacy as well. And I am sure it would have been his choice."

Ajoy Kumar Das design was selected from around 50 submissions received from such diverse segments - from a 16 year old student in Bangalore to a 45 year old homemaker in Coimbatore; from countries as diverse as Greece, France and Malaysia, and cities within India as diverse as the 3 metros Mumbai, New Delhi and Chennai to cities like Bangalore, Pune, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kurukshetra, Ghaziabad and Bhubaneshwar!

Ajoy Kumar Das, the winner, said, "For the past year, 'Unlock' has become a familiar word used by people worldwide. When I saw the theme for this year, 'Unlock with Pride,' the idea resonated very strongly with me. I knew this is a tough competition as the festival poster would receive submissions across the globe. And yet, I wanted to share my ideas for a movement that needs all the support it can get. I attempted to design a minimalist poster yet meaningful. Happy that my entry has been selected for the second time. My good wishes to all the participants and KASHISH 2021 film festival."

Reacting to the choice of the winning entry Sridhar Rangayan, festival director, said "Jury member Jérôme Marrel indeed had a tough choice to make this year as most of the designs received were brilliant. But his choice of Ajoy Kumar Das' design is very apt since it reflects this year's festival theme perfectly."

The winner will receive a cash award of Rs.25,000, supported by late Wendell Rodricks' estate, and a KASHISH butterfly trophy. The winning design will be used on all the KASHISH 2021 collaterals.

The theme for KASHISH 2021 is 'Unlock With Pride', representing the festival's mission to unlock geographical & racial barriers, and encourage love & acceptance of LGBTQIA+ individuals, and thereby unlock a new normal of hope for everyone.

KASHISH 2021, South Asia's biggest LGBTQIA+ film festival, will be held from May 20-30, 2021 virtually, open to audiences across the world to enjoy the best of Indian and International LGBTQIA+ films and panel discussions.