A boy is pulled in different directions as political tensions mount in 1970s Sri Lanka in Deepa Mehta’s latest, “Funny Boy.” A trailer has arrived for the ARRAY Releasing title, which is based on Shyam Selvadurai’s 1994 novel.

As a young boy, Arjie (Arush Nand) is described as “funny.” In the spot, he dresses as a bride during a play wedding with other neighborhood children, inspiring one little girl to call him “a pansy, a sissy, a fag.” His own father alludes to his “girly tendency.” As a teenager, Arjie (Brandon Ingram) goes to an all-boys school and falls for a classmate.

While Arjie grows up and discovers himself, cultural divisions in his country grow more and more fraught. The majority Sinhalese wage violence against the minority Tamils. Though Arjie and his family are Tamil, his beloved aunt begins a relationship with a Sinhalese man, much to her relatives’ dismay.

Arjie’s own relationship comes with its own risks, including social isolation and violence. “Why does everyone say I’m funny? What does that mean?” he asks his parents when he’s a kid. Later on, at school, a classmate offers a cryptic warning to Arjie and his lover: “I saw you both — it’s dangerous and it’s illegal.”

Mehta wrote “Funny Boy” with Selvadurai. The film is Canada’s entry for the 2021 Academy Awards’ International Feature category.

Mehta’s other films include the “Fire,” “Earth,” and “Water” trilogy. The latter was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 2007. Features “Midnight’s Children” and “Anatomy of Violence,” and episodes of “Little America” and “Leila” are also among Mehta’s directing credits.

“Funny Boy” hits select theaters and Netflix December 10.