The cry for acceptance reverberated in the air as Delhi saw its first queer flash-mob which took place this past Sunday morning on the roads of Connaught place. Rainbow flags, placards flashing messages for equality and dance on medley of Bollywood songs like “Bezubaan Dil”, “Dil Ye Ziddi Hai” and “Sadda Haq” marked the event Through the mix of song and dance, the participants wanted to show that queer people are beautiful, powerful individuals who live, eat and breathe the same way as everyone else, and deserve equal rights.
A Delhi collective of queer people Harmless Hugs (HH) organised the flash-mob to spread happiness among gays and convey their point of view to the society. “Till now only Mumbai people used to do these kinds of flash mobs. We wanted the same concept in Delhi to spread awareness with the help of dance because it is the only medium through which we can express any kind of emotion,” said Vinay Kumar, the founder of the group. “We don’t want to get into dharna pradarshan because there are lot of people who are already doing this. We want to break the mould with events like these,” added Kumar.
Choreographer Ronica Jacob, who is also a member of HH said, “Lot of people have got a mental block towards LGBT community. This is our way of showing that we are normal and there is no point in getting homophobic.”
Jacob, who is working as assistant general manager in an event management company wanted people to be aware about the basic rights and discrimination faced by the community. The LGBT community, said Jacob, wanted to show the world that they are not a ‘minuscule minority’ and have a right to live with dignity – free from violence and discrimination. Through the flash mob they wanted to tell everyone that love is beautiful and any law that criminalises love as “unnatural” has to go. They protested against bullying, harassment, extortion, violence, and discrimination that they face everyday.
Harsh, a member at HH is hopeful that soon the community will get social acceptance. It’s a gradual process where they will get legal and social acceptance.”
Now, HH in collaboration with Dhanak- a queer group in Jawaharlal Nehru University, is organising “Ek Madhav Baug”, a play written by Marathi playwright late Chetan Datar at JNU where noted actor Mona Ambegaokar will perform.
