Kolkata queer pride roots for 365 without 377

Happenings, Clickhappy! Jul '14 (update 1)
Pawan Dhall and Kaushik Gupta on the ‘13th Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk’, July 13, 2014, which protested the piecemeal granting of rights to queer people by the Supreme Court of India

The run-up to the '13th Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk' began with a poster making
and slogan writing workshop at WBVHA Towers on June 15, 2014.
Photo credit (above and below): Kolkata Rainbow Pride Festival

Next stop: Kolkata Rainbow Pride Festival fund raiser party
for the walk at Hotel Blue Moon, July 5, 2014.
Photo credit: Pawan Dhall

The power of one

Vartanama, Jul '14
By Pawan Dhall

Photo credit: Pawan Dhall

The first wobbly steps of a child . . . first complete words uttered by the child . . . the child’s first birthday!

The first time a child goes out of home alone to school or for an errand . . . or the first time the child stays home alone.

The first pangs of love in school or college . . . the first heart break.

Sharing property: Queer partner rights

Advice - Rights and Laws, Jul '14
By Kaushik Gupta

Reader queries

I am a man and in a relationship with another man. My boy friend has made me a 100% nominee for his flat, of which he is the sole owner. The building society has registered me as a nominee in their books. What are my rights and privileges and can I stay along with him? Can the society object to or question my stay? If yes, what explanation can I give on legal grounds?

SMK, Mumbai

Mind that itch!

Advice - Mind, Body and Family, Jul '14

By Dr. Tirthankar Guha Thakurta

In this issue, let us explore some frequently asked questions about common sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

The term STD includes any disease that can be transmitted by sexual acts. As these diseases are all infectious, they are also known as sexually transmitted infections or STIs. All people irrespective of their biological sex or gender are susceptible to STIs.

Queer developments in Odisha

Insight, Jul '14
By Pawan Dhall

It would be tempting to dismiss the occasion as yet another consultation on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) concerns, an activity that the Indian queer movement has become rather good at. But this meeting in Hotel Keshari in Bhubaneswar on May 30, 2014 proved to be no run-of-the-mill gathering. Organized by SAKHA, Odisha’s foremost queer support group, and partner agency Solidarity and Action Against the HIV Infection in India (SAATHII), the usual suspects were all there – queer community leaders, NGO workers, lawyers, doctors, psychologists and media persons. Yet the passion with which they discussed and debated key socio-legal concerns facing India’s queer communities was refreshing.

Bangla music against violence

Happenings, Jul '14
Drake Fort reports on the launch of a Bengali music video that talks about the violence faced by queer people

Team Bindubot at the music video shooting site
Photo credit: Bindubot

Kolkata, July 6, 2014: A large part of the struggle of Indian lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other queer people has found its voice mainly in English. However, the non-English speaking queer populace is also now speaking louder, fuelled by the many legal developments around Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code and transgender rights and identities. This is also reflected in the birth and growth of queer support groups all over India beyond the metro cities, as also in the start of Hindi publications like Gaylaxy Hindi (see A Rainbow in Hindi in the February 2014 issue of Varta). And now comes along a music video in Bengali that talks about the violence faced by queer people day in and day out. Lending support to the effort are Bengali musical stalwarts like Srikanto Acharya, Susmit Bose and Pratul Mukhopadhyay.

Silence

Poetry, Jul '14
By Md. Gulrez

you said you were listening to my every word

but it was my silence which needed understanding

the fall and rise of my breath

the smell of my skin

the floating stares

the whirl in the cheek's pool

the dancing Adam's apple

the unshaven face

the dried lips

the hair on the forehead

the tapping of my feet

the stroke of my hands . . .

. . . were you really listening?

Md. Gulrez is a social development professional working on rural poverty.