"The Truth About Who We Are..."

M, Acadamia, New Delhi, India by thegaymenproject

photo by Kevin Truong

M, in his own words: "I moved from one of the tiny corners of India to the capital, Delhi, nine years ago. This place has given me the opportunity to discover myself, to find friends, loved ones, and I am lucky enough to have been part of both queer academia and activism. Though I am out to almost all my friends here, I chose not to do so to my family and at my workplace. India is still a conservative country that still criminalises gay sex. It is risky being gay here but far better than many of the fundamentalist, homophobic nations. In the last many years, I have seen amazing change at an amazing pace in the way LGBT movement have taken place in India. Owing largely to the rise of the internet and social media, things are changing at a lightning speed for the good. Now even school going kids can even talk and discuss about their sexual orientation on social media anonymously or otherwise which was unimaginable when we were in school. I have tried my best to reach out to other queer folks from different backgrounds in the capital city and have sensitised enough number of people and will keep doing so.

But being away from home and being all by yourself in a big city comes with a price. Especially when you spend your childhood in a lovely city full of natural beauty and primarily an agricultural economy where life was much simple. While fighting homophobia has become my social responsibility, I fight urban loneliness on a personal level day and night. While my friends and well wishers keep my spirit up, I am still waiting for my prince charming who will marry me. I don't care whether he comes on a white horse or an Aston Martin. He should come as soon as possible."

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"Fear Eats the Soul"