JOIN USThe Carnival 2013’, held recently at Vishranthi Nilayam, provided the queer community of the City with the perfect space to let their hair down and exhibit their talents. Hosted by Queer Campus Bangalore, an independent queer student and youth collective, it offered the attendees a host of events to take part in, including ‘Not a Number’, a queer choir, a fashion show, speed-dating, a photography exhibition on International Culture, an open-mic session and even a masquerade ball at night.
During the programme, many youngsters came out, shared their experiences and had fun, while raising awareness about the queer community.
“We conducted this programme with the intention of having a safer space for the LGBT community. We promote talent through art, theatre, dance and handicrafts,” says the co-ordinator of the programme, who didn’t want to be named.
To the delight of all those who attended programme, there was also a flea market with 25 stalls, with tarot readers, a caricaturist, a tattooist, handicraft, up-cycled and recycled products as well as cupcake and other food stalls.
The one-day carnival drew around 600 participants. According to the co-ordinator, the fashion show was the highlight of the programme. Besides this, dancing events and singing by the queer choir also attracted large crowds.
“We feel happy that the event brought the community together. At such events, we don’t feel that we are away from the rest,” says Aashish Pandey, a volunteer with Queer Campus Bangalore. He adds, “It was fun too, just like the previous carnival.”
“The response to such events is good since they are fun. There were quite a few people who came to view the performances. However, this time, I thought the
publicity was low-key. It was not as aggressive as it could have been,” states Rohini Malur, facilitator of ‘We’re Here and Queer!’
Rohini, who had set up a tarot-card stall, explains that the stall received a good response, with a number of people lining up for a card reading.
With the motto ‘Everyone is Welcome’, the programme aimed towards a ‘greater understanding of the queer community’.