Homophobia of the middle classes
Pink Pages November 2009 Issue - 2
It’s not the uneducated who are against the scrapping of 377. It’s our urban middle class who loathe talking about homosexuality openly. Some feel it is weird while others think it’s a western concept. I have heard innumerable stories where parents had taken their kids to see a psychiatrist when they came out of their closet. I was watching an English news channel a few days back and there was this poll that asked how many wanted gay marriage to be legalized. The percentage was less than 20. Who watches these English news channels? Well that’s your urban India. Even in the 21st century, in Kolkata my hometown, supposedly a centre of culture, religious leaders meet constantly to denounce the judgment and have the impertinence of saying that people of the gay community should be burned. I wonder why these fundamentalists and fascists, who have done nothing for this country can voice their opinions, and women, gay people and the backward classes, are still fearful to speak out.
Amrita Sengupta
Being gay in Pakistan
A very nice article, but something I wanted to mention regarding re-interpretation of the Quran. Quran, like any other book, you can open, read and interpret to the best of your knowledge and experience. There is no such thing as a right interpretation or a wrong one. Everyone has his own capacity to understand and take away the message. Just like a piece of art, a novel or a poem.
Ulema describe or interpret it to the best of their understanding, I can do it to my knowledge, you can also do it to the best of your knowledge. Does not mean one is right or the other is wrong. Same with the story of Lot, some people put a negative charge on it, some do not. And it’s ok both ways. As one can never claim that their thinking or views is the correct one.
The problem arises only when one tries to force their views on others. Whether, you, I, my neighbor or a mullah sitting in a corner mosque.
Oli
Maine gay marriage ban
Democracy has to learn how to balance majority’s wishes as well as protect some basic rights of all minorities. America is an interesting case study
Rishi
Books and Literature
The author of ‘A Married Woman’ indeed has depicted the lesbian scenario in Indian society in the most matter-of fact way. That same sex love struggles to cope up with the various social,cultural, political issues, only to be left unfulfilled at the end is extremely realistic.
Maitreyee
Good review (The Line of Beauty- Alan Hollinghurst), I enjoyed this review as much as I had enjoyed the novel.. Brilliant novel must say, in both ways as in the emotional content as well as the literary style, one of the best I have ever read.
Manas Gautam
The other side of coming out
Thank you for this article. What you said -about coming out being the ‘it’ thing reminds me of some discussions I have had with a dear friend. That we think of ‘coming out’ as getting it off our chests. So that we can be free of the stress of carrying it. But do we ever think how our parents are going to deal with it?
Deep
I ‘was’ Bi, I ‘am’ gay
Pathetic bi-phobic article. Don’t know how it got to make it to Pink Pages.
Tanmay Singhal
Polls and Polls
Emotions very aptly put across. Superbly written. And yes, all these other things will come, but one by one. Hold your horses for now. Let them loose when the time is right. And for people who think differently or have difficulty accepting the LGBT community, let them be. I am sure they will come around.
Shrushti
Congratulations
Many congratulations on this magazine. I and and even my straight pals have found it immensely riveting. I wish your team all the best! Looking forward to many more issues!
Rohit Chavan
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Pink Pages wishes its readers a Happy Pride month with this Pride special issue, which also happens to be our first anniversary issue! Check it out for what our readers think about the idea of gay pride. Have a look at World Wide Pride- an ongoing photography project featuring Pride parades across the world. Also, as our community reels under the repercussions of the Prof. Siras case, read about what many of India’s openly gay academicians have to say on this matter. Find out what Revathi- South India’s prominent transgendered activist has to say about the struggles she had to go through before achieving her current status as a leader and counselor to many. Read Arvind Narain’s interview on the ongoing court battle against Section 377. Also, as ‘Quarantine’ is released, find out what Indian-American writer Rahul Mehta has to say on his new book. And as iconic Hoshang Merchant completes work on his autobiography, he updates us on his views on the current state of gay literature in India.
