It’s been nine years since the first Pride Parade happened on a sunny afternoon, a day after Independence Day, on August 16 in 2008. A quick glance at the Queer Azadi Mumbai’s official blog recounts the history of the momentous march. Over the years, the attendees have forgone the masks they hid behind with more shinning, smiling faces proudly walking in solidarity. Between then and now, July 2, 2009 happened, when the Delhi High Court passed the judgement to decriminalise Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code. And then disappointingly, the judgement was overturned on December 11, 2013. Certainly, it affected morale in the queer community but it did little to break the spirit. And so, on the ninth Mumbai Pride March, the peaceful appeal for equal rights continues, but this year (like every one before) it is pushing the boundaries further.
A full calendar
With the hashtag #itgetsbehtar, all of January saw a bevy of events aimed at community spirit. “This year we have 24 events,” says Balachandran Ramiah from GayBombay who’s part of the organising committee. “It spanned open public events to literary discussions in closed auditoriums, film screenings, etc.” The Queer Azaadi Mumbai (QAM) — the organising committee overlooking Pride Month — had their regular events this year. There was the Gulabi Mela, an extravagant marketplace with stalls that offer patrons everything from apparel to food and games. Some theatrical performances made a come back: Ek Madhav Baug and even the all-male Lavani dance, Bin Baykancha Tamasha . Asia’s biggest queer film festival Kashish saw a day of film screenings, thanks to director Sridhar Rangayan. And of course, the fun and games couldn’t be skipped out on with the return of The Amazing Q Hunt (treasure quest), Kite Flying, Queer Games and the Queer Premier League.
The additions to the calendar ranged from community-building to taking a step towards focusing on the other (oft-neglected) letters of LGBTQIH. For instance the queer art festival, Anubav, and Poster Making for Pride sought to tap into the hidden talents of the community while the play, Colour Positive, shed light on the plight and situations faced by queer folk.
Widening the reach
It’s been especially heartening to see mainstream venues open their doors (hopefully hearts too) to host Pride events, and the spread of the queer movement. No Pride month is complete without a flash mob and this year’s edition took place in Thane, endeavouring for a far and wide reach. Venues like AntiSocial (the city’s current darling spot for indie music), G5A Foundation for Contemporary Culture, and even the normally more stodgy NCPA played host to events, cementing the fact that our city is working towards inclusion.
Of note is that this year’s Pride Parade is perhaps its most inclusive. The organisers encourage the participation of the differently-abled, with mobivans providing transport to and from homes to the march’s venue. Volunteers, including sign language interpreters, will be present to assist at all times. The QAM will also have Pride material in Braille for the blind. “An increased demand this year is to make the government amend The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016 in accordance with the Supreme Court judgement,” says Saurabh Bondre, an independent LGBT activist adding that, “The Bill doesn’t sufficiently protect trans people.” Plus, the march will see three non-queer groups walk in solidarity: students from across the city, mothers of queer and non-queer individuals, and the Future Doctors of Equality.
The QAM will identify a non-queer issue to donate money to, like they did during the drought in Maharashtra, the Chennai floods, and the Nepal Earthquake. “There’s no hard and fast rule but contributing to a non-queer cause happens when we see a lacunae that needs our help,” says Bondre.
Party politics
The highlight of any Pride March is its after party, which for years has been hosted by GayBombay. This time, Gaysi takes the baton amidst a fair amount of opposition. Their LBT party only allows entry to gay men if they’re accompanied by LBT women. “The ‘L’ has always been neglected and women’s spaces have been challenged all over the world,” says Sakshi Juneja of Gaysi. She adds that since the frequency of their LBT events increased, so has the queer women’s active participation in the city. “We’re having an LBT party on Pride night because that’s when you want more people to come, to own the pride,” she says. The founders of Gaysi Family aim to create a safe space for women with a women-only party. After all, last year’s shindig — which took place at the now shuttered Karma in South Mumbai — had 1,000-plus attendees under its roof, with a negligible faction of women drowned in a sea of men. “Why would we want to cater to LBT women when we know only 70 of them will be going there?” asks Anuja Parikh, co-founder of Gaysi. “We are trying to fit 300 people. We will get 300 people.”
While the ethos behind an LBT-only party seems like a necessary area of focus, it does bring to mind questions of inclusion. After all, the tenet of Pride is to welcome and accept everyone. Surely, there could be confusion created by the difficulty in visually navigating trans identity. But that’s perhaps best tackled on an individual level. With Gaysi’s pride party accommodating only 300 people, the rest of the community can opt to attend GayBombay’s non-official party, an event that’s mushroomed in response to fear of missing out on post-march celebrations.
For those who’ve managed to miss the entire Pride Month’s proceedings, a few fringe events will continue to take place across the city. Just tomorrow, London’s ivo theatre and Mumbai’s Queer Ink will present Outrageous!. The production will feature five LGBT-themed acts, including a drag performance, an exploration of bisexual identity through movement, spoken word, etc.
And should you miss everything, just remember queer equality is a state of mind not just restricted to tangible representations.
QAM Pride Walk 2017 will take place this afternoon starting from August Kranti Maidan at 3 p.m.
