Click to play videoNew Delhi: Sexuality was once considered an unimportant, secondary issue in Indian social sphere. But now, it's vibrant and political. It fights for the legal, and social rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders, Joined in by health care NGOs, human rights activists and feminist groups.
Together, they form contemporary India's queer movement.
"It's significantly different from women's rights politics, but there are many points where all these different movements meet,” says queer rights activist Ponni.
Once a derogatory word, queer is accepted as an identity today, signifying a sexual orientation. The recent PSBT Film Festival on Gender and Sexuality and ongoing Nigah Queer Fest prove the point.
"It (Queer) does not fit within societal norms and society is not generally accepting of it. Although society in general is ready to talk about these issues,” says a researcher at the Nigah Film Fest, Mario.
However, in complete contrast to the vibrant queer movement is the Indian State. It criminalises homosexuality through the Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code.
Gay activists call this a violation of human rights, stamped and approved by the government.
"The use of Section 377 against homosexual men is rare, but how way it plays out in reality is that it's often used to extort, blackmail, it's used by police to harass,” says a researcher with Alternative Law Forum Siddharth Narrain.
But despite the Constitutional criminalisation, queer voices are gaining strength from the civil society that is getting less narrow minded about them. It just goes to show that the 145-year-old Section 377 is more out-of-date than ever.
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