How Delhi celebrated Pride

Brut India

For some, it was underwhelming, but for others, it was a heartwarming surprise. People from the LGBTQIA+ community shared their coming out stories at Delhi's Pride event.

Transcript

00:00Mom, I like girls too.

00:02I attended the Queer Made Weekend event in the National Capital

00:06and met people who shared their coming-out stories with me.

00:10Why are you completely sharing your coming-out story with us?

00:13My coming-out story was quite stupid.

00:16I was dating and I had this crush on a woman who was engaged.

00:21My coming-out was very underwhelming.

00:30Hello, Delhi, frogs, we are queer.

00:37We are queer.

00:40Music, glitter, and love.

00:47That's how Delhi celebrated Pride.

00:50It's just so colourful and vibrant and everyone's themselves.

00:53In 2014, when I told my mom that I was gay,

00:59she said, you're a whore.

01:01Because my mom didn't know what being trans and gay was.

01:06She just knew that what our society told her was that being a whore is just a whore.

01:11They applaud me.

01:13I'm a trans woman and people don't see me, but I'm seen in a lot of wrong things.

01:18Sex work is my full-time job and begging is my birthright.

01:22That's what society tells me.

01:24I think I've been blessed with wonderful parents.

01:27I didn't have a problem talking to them about my orientation.

01:32My coming-out story was quite stupid, quite honestly.

01:35I think it went through my school.

01:38My teacher found out that I like women, blah, blah, blah.

01:41She told my principal about it.

01:43My principal called my parents and that's how they found out.

01:45My coming-out was very underwhelming.

01:48Although most of them initially felt nervous

01:50about revealing their true selves to their parents,

01:53they shared how coming out had been liberating for them.

01:57My dad wasn't that happy.

01:58But my mom was like,

02:00this is my child, what's going on?

02:02So it was a mixed reaction, but that's okay.

02:04But I didn't tell my mom.

02:06I have a different identity.

02:08And it took her time to accept who I am and what I am.

02:12But at the end of the day, my mom was a single parent.

02:14So she said, whoever you are, you're my son.

02:17So it's important for me to accept myself first.

02:20Because what will the society accept?

02:22Today, I'm a single mother, so no one will accept me.

02:24Who will accept you?

02:25So that's how my journey started.

02:27And by 2018, I transformed myself completely.

02:31And today, I'm Karnika's brother.

02:33I was about 11 or 12 years old.

02:36And I went up to my mother and I told her that I had a crush on this girl in my school.

02:41And she turned to me and she asked,

02:43do you like boys and girls?

02:45And I said, yes.

02:46And she said clearly and she went back to doing the dishes.

02:49But you know, I came out in middle school.

02:51So there was a lot of, but you don't like me, right?

02:55You don't want to kiss me, right?

02:57But my immediate family and most of my friends were very supportive,

03:00which I'm very lucky for.

03:01While some of the family members came around eventually,

03:05others are still clinging on to the hope of acceptance.

03:08Can you share your coming out story with us?

03:10I'm from a Christian background, okay.

03:12And in Christianity, it's kind of a stereotype that

03:16LGBT, they don't really support.

03:18So some people show even hate.

03:20I came out around 2019 in college.

03:25I was dating and I had this crush on a woman who was engaged.

03:32It was illegal for me.

03:34And then came college.

03:36I had an attraction with a girl which turned into liking romantically.

03:42Before that, I need to figure it out.

03:44I talked to my friend that,

03:46yeah, I think that I am into girls also.

03:52Later, I confessed to her that, yes, I liked you.

03:56And I told my mom,

03:58mom, I like girls too.

04:01And she was angry about it.

04:05Because again, Christian family.

04:07She was like, I gave you birth for this.

04:09That was so rude.

04:11We didn't talk for one week.

04:13But then I don't even remember if she remembers now.

04:17I sat my parents down when I was 14.

04:20And told them that I'm bisexual.

04:22And instantly they were praying that I would fall in love with a guy instead of a girl.

04:28And then I found out I'm asexual.

04:30So that's not going to happen ever.

04:31My dad was very, very open minded.

04:34He used to discuss pretty women with me.

04:40Like, that person looks nice.

04:42What do you think about them?

04:43And that fashion is not so great.

04:46So yeah, my mom,

04:47a little not so great reaction.

04:49Because she's Christian.

04:51But over the years, I've been working on her.

04:53So she's much better now.

04:55The two day festival brought people together to celebrate, support and promote businesses

05:00and products created by LGBTQIA plus community members.

05:04I think it's super important to have such events, not just because it makes us feel included.

05:08But you see, these are most of the pop ups are queer owned, you know.

05:11So this is a way to support businesses that deserve the attention.

05:14My message for the allies is keep going, keep doing what you're doing.

05:17We need you. We really need you.

05:18And we love you.

05:19This event is the reason a lot of us are able to come here.

05:23And it's a nice safe space we are able to do.

05:25And we look however we want.

05:27As long as we do not receive basic human rights, we do need something.

05:31However, people feel that the community needs more representation.

05:35Our LGBTQIA plus community needs to be together first.

05:41Our community is very divided.

05:43There's a separate group of lesbians, a separate group of gays.

05:46Trans people have to deal with transphobia.

05:48So when we leave all that and become a community,

05:51then maybe the outside community will be able to understand us, what we are, what we want.

05:56And visibility should start from home first.

05:59I think if we tell people about ourselves at home,

06:02then maybe we won't be afraid of the society.

06:04All the suicides that are happening today will be stopped.

06:06For acceptance, we need to first educate everyone

06:12and make them aware of what being gay is.

06:16The event concluded with the thrilling performances of Rani Kohinoor aka Sushant Digvikar

06:22and Lavani Queens from Kali Billi Productions among others.

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