Kalhari Jayaweera

When Bend it Like Beckham was released in 2002, for many South Asians it represented a sunny vision of racial harmony. And while I still love the film, there’s a heavier, lesser-known release from the same year which speaks more to me in our current political moment.

In his complete commitment to a genre that is so often played by straight men for laughs, the Spider-Man actor’s Lip Sync Battle performance embodies a femininity that I have been searching for all my life.