Harmless Hugs is a young collective working for LGBT rights in India that was started as an online secret LGBT group. Harmless Hugs organised the first LGBT Flashmob in Delhi in 2015 and have been doing it every year since then. [1] [2] [3] Harmless Hugs has also organised four editions of Delhi International Queer Theater and Film Festival (2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018). [4] [5] [6] [7] The 2016 edition had Piyush Mishra as chief guest and had support of Kunal Kapoor and Kalki. [8] [9] Apart from this, the collective organises regular meet ups, informative sessions and plays (in collaboration with Asmita Theatre Group led by Arvind Gaur) to spread awareness about the LGBT rights in India and sensitise the society about the community. Harmless Hugs also launched an anthology of short stories around queer lives in 2016 which was launched by Piyush Mishra. [10] [11] Presently, the collective is managed by Aditya Bondyopadhyay, Naman Verma, Kanav Sahgal, and Rishu Kapur. The collective was founded by Vinay Kumar on 10 September 2012. [12] [13] [14] [15] [16]
Piyush Mishra is an Indian actor, singer, lyricist, playwright, musician, and screenwriter. Mishra grew up in Sambhal, and graduated from National School of Drama, Delhi in 1986. Thereafter, he started his career in Hindi theatre in Delhi. Over the next decade, he established himself as a theatre director, actor, lyricist and singer. He moved to Mumbai in 2002, receiving acclaim for his acting in Maqbool (2003) and Gangs of Wasseypur (2012).
India has a long and ancient tradition of culture associated with the LGBTQ community, with many aspects that differ markedly from modern liberal western culture.
Humsafar Trust is an NGO in Mumbai that promotes LGBT rights. Founded by Ashok Row Kavi, Suhail Abbasi, and Sridhar Rangayan in 1994, it is one of the largest and most active of such organisations in India. It provides counselling, advocacy and healthcare to LGBT communities and has helped reduce violence, discrimination and stigma against them. Humsafar Trust is the convenor member of Integrated Network for Sexual Minorities (INFOSEM).
Queer Azaadi Mumbai Pride March, also called Queer Azaadi March and Mumbai pride march, is an annual LGBTQIA pride parade that is held in the city of Mumbai, capital of Maharashtra, India. It usually begins from Gowalia Tank ending at Girgaum Chowpatty. It, along with the Pride Week, is organized by Queer Azaadi Mumbai, a collective of organizations and individuals working for the rights of LGBTQIA community. The participants of the march include people from the LGBTQIH community as well their "straight allies", from India and outside. In addition to being a celebration of queer pride, the pride march and related events are a platform to ask for equal rights.
Delhi Queer Pride Parade is organised by members of the Delhi Queer Pride Committee every last Sunday of November since 2008. The queer pride parade is a yearly festival to honour and celebrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, and their supporters. The parade usually runs from Barakhamba Road to Tolstoy Marg to Jantar Mantar.
Shilpi Marwaha is an actor in the Delhi Theatre Circuit who first performed in 2008. She was a street theatre activist during the "anti corruption movement" in Delhi and the protests held at Rastrapati Bhawan, where she raised her voice against the 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder known as the "Nirbhaya" or "Damini" case. She has also worked in mainstream cinema in the Bollywood film, Raanjhanaa as Rashmi, Abhay Deol's sister, directed by Anand L. Rai in 2013, Bhoomiyude Avakashikal, directed by T. V. Chandran, "Widow of Silence" as Aasiya directed by Praveen Morchhale in 2018 and "Chhapaak" directed by Meghna Gulzar in 2020. She was awarded first Sarla Birla Award for her contribution to theatre, AAS Excellence Award 2016 for her participation in women empowerment initiatives, DCW award from Delhi Commission for Women and 'Devi' award from Indian Express Group for her contribution in women empowerment through theatre.
This is a timeline of notable events in the history of non-heterosexual conforming people of South Asian ancestry, who may identify as LGBTIQGNC, men who have sex with men, or related culturally-specific identities such as Hijra, Aravani, Thirunangaigal, Khwajasara, Kothi, Thirunambigal, Jogappa, Jogatha, or Shiva Shakti. The recorded history traces back at least two millennia.
Chennai has LGBTQIA cultures that are diverse concerning- socio-economic class, gender, and degree of visibility and politicisation. They have historically existed in the margins and surfaced primarily in contexts such as transgender activism and HIV prevention initiatives for men having sex with men (MSM) and trans women (TG).
Good As You is a support and social group for LGBTQ people and others questioning their gender and sexuality in Bangalore. It started in 1994 and is one of the longest surviving groups that advocates equal rights for homosexuals and other gender and sexual minorities in Bangalore.
Queer Pride Guwahati was organised for the first time by the members and supporters of the local LGBT community in Guwahati, Assam on 9 February 2014. The Queer Pride Guwahati was the first LGBT Pride in the entire North Eastern India. The Pride is now an annual event.
The Chennai Rainbow Pride March has been held by members of Tamil Nadu LGBTIQA+ communities every June since 2009. The pride march is organised under the banner Tamil Nadu Rainbow Coalition, which is a collective of LGBT individuals, supporters, and organizations working on human rights and healthcare for the LGBTQIA community. The Pride March occurs on the final Sunday of June every year. The Pride March is usually preceded by a month-long series of events organized by NGOs and organizations to inculcate awareness and support for the LGBTQ community, such as panel discussions, film screenings, and cultural performances. The Chennai Vaanavil Suyamariyadhai Perani a.k.a. Chennai Rainbow Self-Respect March is known for being inter-sectional in nature as it addresses issues with multiple axes such as caste, class, religion coupled with gender discrimination.
Kumud Mishra is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He is known for playing supporting and antagonist roles.
Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk (KRPW) is the oldest pride walk in India and South Asia. The first march in Kolkata was organised on 2 July 1999. The walk was called The Friendship Walk. Kolkata was chosen as the first city in India to host the march owing to Kolkata's history of movements for human and Political Rights. Currently, Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk is organised by the Kolkata Rainbow Pride Festival (KRPF).
The Chandigarh LGBTQ Pride Walk is an annual march held as part of the "Garvotsava" pride week celebrations in Chandigarh, the capital city of the northern Indian states of Punjab and Haryana. The event aims to celebrate and bring together the LGBTQ community and its supporters.
The Delhi International Queer Theater and Film Festival (DIQTFF), is a queer cultural festival curating films, plays, talks and performances. It is organised by a queer collective in Delhi called Harmless Hugs. The film festival is intended to connect with larger diaspora of the Indian LGBTQ struggle for equal human rights and to reach out to masses via omnipotence of Media, Theatre and Cinema. Movie screenings and plays are well complemented by a round of panel discussions and debates, including some of the biggest names from the Indian LGBTQ Movement. Discussions around tumultuous territories of politics, gender disparity, coming out and involvement of families and more will also be a part of this two-day event, that is happening every December since its initiation in 2015.
The Great Indian Film and Literature Festival is a film and literary festival in India, started in 2012. It is India's first film and literature festival. The festival conducts film screenings, theater presentations, poetry reading, musical concerts and workshops. The Great Indian Film and Literature Festival is supported by the Department of Culture and Department of Tourism, and the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
Jabariya Jodi is an Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film starring Sidharth Malhotra and Parineeti Chopra. The story is based upon the tradition of groom kidnapping, prevalent in Bihar. The film is produced by Ekta Kapoor, Shobha Kapoor and Shailesh R Singh, and directed by Prashant Singh. Principal photography began on 10 August 2018 in Lucknow, and the film was theatrically released in India on 9 August 2019.
Mehandi Laga Ke Rakhna 2 is a 2018 Indian Bhojpuri language romance drama film directed by Manjul Thakur and produced by Ananjay Raghuraj with co-produced by "Kumkum Films" under "Ananya Craft And Visions" and presented by "Aadi Shakti Entertainment" With "Trimurti Entertainment Media". This film is a remake of the 1995 Kannada Film Anuraga Sangama which was already remade in Hindi as Humko Tumse Pyaar Hai. The film is a sequel of 2017 film Mehandi Laga Ke Rakhna. The stars Pradeep Pandey akka "Chintu" and Richa Dixit in lead role. While Yash Kumarr, Maya Yadav, Ranjish Jhanjhi, Upashna Vaishnav, Rajbeer Tiwari, Usha Vishwakarma, Dikeshwar Verma and Manoj Tiger appear in supporting roles. Anjana Singh and Poonam Dubey make a special appearance.
Pride De Goa was the official pride parade walk in the state of Goa, India. It was organised by the NGO Goa Rainbow Trust.
The Golden Jury Film Festival is a film festival in India, that is held annually in Mumbai. It was founded in 2019.