Displays by sketch artists, acclaimed films on queer themes, play by troupes from Chennai and Hyderabad, dance performance, poetry reading, stand-up comedy and more; these are some of the events that people can catch during the Queer and Allies Art Festival to be held on October 29, coinciding with the ‘pride month.’
Started in 2015 by Shyam Konnur in Bengaluru, the festival which aims to provide an opportunity for both queer and straight artists, who are supporters, to come together to talk about sexuality, diversity and rights. A travelling event, it is coming to the city for the second time.
“I felt that queer events in the city were losing audience with same artists performing every time. That when I started QAAF. I wanted to bring in queer and straight artists from across the country to participate. We have done events in Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai,” said Mr. Konnur, founder of MIST, a city-based LGBTQ collective.
The event has also worked as an awareness building platform for the members of the community.
“Most of our volunteer are allies. The festival has generated a lot of support for the community, which is a reason why we bringing it out yearly. The first event saw 200 people participating. We are expecting the number to increase this time,” he said.
Yash Sharma, organiser of Bengaluru Pride and Karnataka Queer Habba, which is co-hosting the event, said, “We want to showcase who we are through the event. It is not just a platform for us to showcase our talent, but also garner support for the fight for our rights.”
Kaatiyakaaris, a Chennai-based theatre group, will be staging a play on the consequences of forced marriage between a gay man and a straight woman.
“The play is based on a true story of a gay man who is forced to marry a woman by his family. The woman who comes to know about his sexuality ends up committing suicide. The play tries to tell the member of the community that such forced marriages end up ruining many lives,” said Srijith Sundaram, threatre artisist who directed the play. He said that such events are a great platform to have an open dialogue about the LGBTQ issues and generate awareness among the public.
