Indian Gays and Lesbians: Pushed Back into the Closet.
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(The story first appeared in the Bangkok Post Dec 2013)
If one thought of gays in India, one thought of spike -haired, multi – tattooed, pink- shirted youths with coyish sing-song speech and exaggerated mannerisms. People who celebrated their queerness with a flourish and had a certain in-your face show of defiance.
Their idols were famous fashion designers like Rohit Bal, David Abraham, Manish Arora who brazenly flaunted their gay status. Such was these designer’s charisma in the fashion industry, that being gay was said to be an advantage for a beginner.
But far away from the glitz and glamour of the fashion world there were millions of gays and lesbians who seethed in silent desperation. They did not bleach their hair, tattoo their skin, or exhibit any of the homosexual traits that are a staple of Bollywood stereotyping.
They were regular people-next-door with regular looks and regular jobs and regular middle-class aspirations. Many of them lived in small towns and villages with muffled up identities. So in 2009 when the Delhi High Court passed a judgment on section 377, and decriminalized homosexuality, it was the day this silent majority finally found a voice. A big weight had been lifted off them. Section 377 , drafted in 1861 by Lord Macaulay was a colonial law which criminalized “carnal intercourse against the order of nature”.
But on Dec 11 2013, the Indian Supreme court pushed all Indian gay men and women, back into the closet. It overturned the progressive 2009 Delhi High Court ruling and re-criminalizing homosexual behavior. Over 50 million homosexuals in India were condemned to being criminals again. The judgment has however shocked everyone and spontaneous protests on and offline have erupted all over the country.
Question is being asked why consenting adults in the world’s largest democracy can’t decide for themselves what they want to do in bed? That was India becoming a nanny state? Writer Vikram Seth himself a gay remarked, ”Today is a great day for prejudice and inhumanity”.
But the damage it has done to the invisible middle-class gay men and women who had just emerged from the shadows is immeasurable. “ I wanted to cry when I heard the verdict”, says Shre Nik, a 29 year old filmmaker. “ It took a lot of effort on my part to convince my mother about homosexuality and just when they were coming to terms with my status this judgment comes . Suddenly I am a criminal. We have gone back 200 years in time with this judgment”, he says.
Walid , 29, research scholar was not so fortunate. His family never understood his point of view. His father told him bluntly that if he spoke about homosexuality again he would stab him. The Supreme Court judgment has only hardened their stand and they have already begun to send him we-told-you-so feelers.
“My father told me clearly that he would rather have me dead than have me a homosexual. He said our religion is against it and that was enough”, says Walid.
He says the judgment will only give excuse to the police to exploit and intimidate the LGBT community. “We wont be able to have our gay get-togethers or parties anymore without the fear of being busted by the cops. They will demand bribes off us for whatever we do”, he says.
Agrees Ansh Thakur 30, a businessman who said he has been told by his friends to remove his name from all gay websites lest he be hounded by the police. “ I fear for my safety now. If I am with my partner and we hold hands we can be framed under section 377. Whatever hope we had after the Delhi High Court judgment has died”, he says.
Ansh also had a difficult time convincing his family about his status. “They love me so have let me be. We don’t talk about homosexuality anymore. Somewhere they hope that I may become straight and marry a girl and lead a life they have planned for me. This judgment makes me look bad again in front of my family”, he says.
Sambhav Kaalia a student in Delhi says he and his boyfriend broke the news to his family about moving to Spain a few days ago. They had not wanted him to leave India but after hearing the Supreme Court judgment they said they would be okay to let them settle in Spain.
“As soon as I heard the news, I imagined the faces of all those young LGBT people who commit suicide everyday not just in the big cities but in those small cities where this law is used to harass them”, he says.
No, Indian LGBT community refuses to be pushed back into the closet!
I read this somewhere: The Indian government can persecute based on sexual preferences but it can never undo the momentum that the Indian gay rights’ movement has gathered over the last four years.
Its a good article Sanjay Austa my good wishes, keep your good work flowing like this. Its a huge support from you my friend. This article Brings back a lot of memories.
Very enlightening piece.. It also shows the deep rooted prejudices within the indian society which needs to be uprooted sooner.. It’s all about a person’s individual constitutional rights and choices he/she makes.. How can the parliamentarians be in denial mode instead of taking a tough stand..