The first poster of award-winning director Rahat Kazmi's film, Lihaaf (The Quilt) was released at the ongoing Cannes Film Festival. The movie is based on Urdu short story writer Ismat Chughtai's most celebrated as well as controversial work of the same name.
The poster shows feet of two women - one wearing a pair of heavily-embellished anklets, the other with a thinner set, entangled on a dark red velvet quilt.
The film stars Tannishtha Chatterjee and Sonal Sehgal in the lead. Set in Lucknow, the story revolves around lonely Begum Jaan, who turns to her masseuse Rabbo seeking comfort and companionship.
Begum Jaan's young niece is the narrator of the story, who is devastated when she learns about the nature of their relationship.
Since the story touches upon the themes of homosexuality, the author had to deal with a lot of controversies and was accused of obscenity. She then went on to defend herself in the Lahore Court and was absolved of the charges later.
The film has been produced by Kazmi, Tariq Khan, Zeba Sajid, Namita Lal, Umesh Shukla, Utpal Acharya and Ashish Wagh. It is co-produced by Oscar-winning producer Marc Baschett.