[Reader-list] Queer Parade Accounts?

[pritham k chakravarthy]

Dear Shuddha,

This is my first response to any reader-list for frankly some of the exchanges in it scares me.

You had asked for some response on the Queer Parade.

This is from Chennai, June 28th Sunday that began at sharp 4 pm at the Labour Statue at the Marina and walked up to Gandhi Statue. Officially the parade was to finish at 6 pm. But no forced us to abruptly end it. We hung around in the beach, played in the water for hours afterwards. 

As one of the people who danced, laughed, carried banners, shouted slogans, help make new ones and thoroughly enjoyed myself, I should say Chennai is proud of itself. There were rainbow scarfs, flags, caps distributed to all the onlookers. We came in a variety of wardrobe, that made a rainbow by itself. 

Marina on a normal Sunday evening is very crowded. The peaceful parade gathered many beachgoers to join in, ask what it was about, then dance with a very of us, allow to be hugged [which believe me is blasphemy in Chennai], auto drivers who lent us bottles of water, peanut sellers who came forward with nuts... what can you say. It was amazing. 

Absolutely no age/sex/dress code bars... Aravani, LGBTQ or some us mothers who were a part of this with our daughters. some even with their dogs on leash with colourful caps. 

A year ago when I walked along in Trichur in a similar parade we dreamt of doing this in Chennai. Now I know we can have a peaceful, happy, merry parade for any rightful cause and the few mandatory police posted [most of them women] will join the party too.

Happy me,
Pritham K. Chakravarthy

> To: reader-list at sarai.net
> From: shuddha at sarai.net
> Date: Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:39:33 +0530
> Subject: [Reader-list] Queer Parade Accounts?
> 
> Dear All,
> 
> Surely, there must be people on this list who walked in the Queer  
> Pride Parades in Delhi, Bangalore, Madras and Kolkata (and  
> elsewhere). It would be great to have some first person accounts, of  
> atmosphere and responses.
> 
> best
> 
> Shuddha
> 
> Shuddhabrata Sengupta
> The Sarai Programme at CSDS
> Raqs Media Collective
> shuddha at sarai.net
> www.sarai.net
> www.raqsmediacollective.net
> 
> 
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