Community Development Office to reach out to NRIs
To provide a direct interface between the Indian government and NRIs in the US, a Community Development Officer (CDO) has been appointed in Washington.
***~~Forein Girl Live Chat~~***
Top 100 Gay Getaways
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
"Queen" Nooyi Most Powerful Business Woman
'Queen' Nooyi rocks US business world
Indra Nooyi, the Indian-origin Queen of the American business world, kept her crown intact for the second year in a row as Fortune magazine named her the most powerful businesswoman in the US.
Indra Nooyi, the Indian-origin Queen of the American business world, kept her crown intact for the second year in a row as Fortune magazine named her the most powerful businesswoman in the US.
13 Die In Indian Stampede
13 die in Mughalsarai rly station stampede
Most of the victims were women who were on their way to Varanasi for the 'Jivitputrika' festival, reports Prabhu Razdan.
Most of the victims were women who were on their way to Varanasi for the 'Jivitputrika' festival, reports Prabhu Razdan.
Ex-MP Being Put To Death
DM lynching case Ex-MP Anand Mohan gets death sentence
In a landmark verdict, the Patna court punishes the former MP and his wife for inciting a mob to lynch the Gopalganj DM 13 years ago.
In a landmark verdict, the Patna court punishes the former MP and his wife for inciting a mob to lynch the Gopalganj DM 13 years ago.
India Singer Charged
Human trafficking case Singer Daler Mehndi, brother charged
A court in Patiala formally charged the famous bhangra-pop singer and his brother in a human trafficking case filed against them in 2003.
A court in Patiala formally charged the famous bhangra-pop singer and his brother in a human trafficking case filed against them in 2003.
Pop Singer Daler Mehndi And His Brother With Human Trafficking
A court in Patiala on Wednesday charged bhangra-pop singer Daler Mehndi and his brother with human trafficking .
Daler and his brother Shamsher have been charged with forgery, conspiracy and cheating. The singer was present when the charges were framed.
The framing of charges came despite the police seeking his discharge in the case saying that no evidence had been found against the singer who shot into fame with his number "Bolo tara ra ra" in the mid 1990s.
The police had earlier also tried to seek his discharge but the court did not allow this on a petition by the complainants.
The singer was arrested by the Punjab police in October 2003 after Shamsher and two others were named in an immigration fraud case - called "kabootarbaazi" in Punjab.
Complainants Bakshish Singh and others had told police that they had been duped by the Mehndi brothers and others who had promised to help take them abroad.
Daler and his brother Shamsher have been charged with forgery, conspiracy and cheating. The singer was present when the charges were framed.
The framing of charges came despite the police seeking his discharge in the case saying that no evidence had been found against the singer who shot into fame with his number "Bolo tara ra ra" in the mid 1990s.
The police had earlier also tried to seek his discharge but the court did not allow this on a petition by the complainants.
The singer was arrested by the Punjab police in October 2003 after Shamsher and two others were named in an immigration fraud case - called "kabootarbaazi" in Punjab.
Complainants Bakshish Singh and others had told police that they had been duped by the Mehndi brothers and others who had promised to help take them abroad.
Top Holloween Gay Parties Your Must See List
34th Halloween Parade
New York City
Oct. 31, 2007; 7-9 p.m.
www.halloween-nyc.com
KNOW: New York City's carnival started as a gay event with 150 people. The Halloween Parade is now the world's largest Halloween event, attracting nearly 2 million people.
WHERE: The parade careers up Sixth Avenue from Spring to 22nd streets, through Chelsea from the Village. Masks, headdresses, wigs and wings flood gay bars in Chelsea, the Village, West Fourth and Sixth.
DRESS: Anyone in costume is welcome to join in as seething seas of cross-dressers sway through the streets. It might all be good fun, but this is New York and it's competitive. Undercover agents award prizes for the best costumes, which are often pieces of performance art. SCARY FUN: The best place to congregate is around Christopher Street and Seventh Avenue or in Washington Square Park near NYU.
West Hollywood Halloween Costume Carnival
Los Angeles
Oct. 31, 2007; 6 p.m.
www.visitwesthollywood.com; 310-289-2525
KNOW: Twenty-five years ago, WeHo boys spilled out of bars, blocking Santa Monica Boulevard and stopping traffic in a spontaneous gathering of drag, costumes and bare bodies. It's evolved from one gay evening to an event swarming with people who come hundreds of miles from all around Southern California. Creative costumes used to outnumber spectators; now there are more people not in costume. Santa Monica Boulevard closes at 3 p.m. and vendors, radio stations, DJs, performers and hundreds of thousands of onlookers descend.
WHERE: The heart of West Hollywood; Santa Monica Boulevard between Sweetzer and Doheny; Robertson Boulevard between Santa Monica and Melrose Avenue and in many bars and restaurants along the way. Gay bars are packed; dancing and partying goes on until the early hours.
DRESS: Los Angeles' galaxy of entertainment-industry egos makes WeHo's Halloween super-competitive, often courtesy of real studio costumes. Picture 25 red, white and blue debutantes or a phalanx of gladiators plunging down Santa Monica Boulevard. Tacky, clever and the more over-the-top the better is the L.A. mantra. Mardi Gras-type garb, drag, military and minimal all star. SCARY FUN: Here Bar, the Abbey, Rage, Ultra Suede, and Factory throb with life. More costumes shimmer in the clubs than on the streets. The crowd tends to be gayer at Here and the Abbey later in the evening.
To get the most out of the party, you need to dress up. Walk the boulevard, popping in and out of bars along the way (beware the prohibitive club cover charges). Allow extra time to make your way along the boulevard -- depending how good you look, it can take up to an hour per block, with suburbanites stopping you every five feet for photos.
Halloween 24
New Orleans, La.
Oct. 25-28, 2007
www.halloweenneworleans.comKNOW: The 24th Halloween is a series of events benefiting Lazarus House, a home for men and women with HIV/AIDS whose families cannot take care of them.
WHERE: Head for the Bourbon Pub and Parade club. Bodies fill the venue and spill onto Bourbon Street from midday Thursday till the early hours of Monday.
DRESS: For the circuit party, originality is key -- it's about how creative you can get. Costumes are always over-the-top, from a 7-foot tall drag queen dressed as the Chiquita banana girl to an airport tower complete with lights. SCARY FUN: The costume-obligatory Wild Kingdom Costume Dance Extravaganza (Oct. 27, 2007, The Sugar Mill, 10 p.m.-4 a.m.; $75) is the major event and the main reason to sashay down South this October. Don't even think about skipping the adornment.
This year's theme is "Wild Kingdom" -- so get in character and parade through the French Quarter to bask in attention
Fantasy Fest and Halloween
Key West, Fla.Oct. 19-28, 2007
www.fantasyfest.net ; 305-296-1817
KNOW: A little bit of Mardi Gras, a little bit of Halloween and a lot of fun with Florida's finest.
WHERE: The bars and restaurants around Duval Street, between Eaton and South streets, see most fantasy action take place.
DRESS: A cacophony of opportunities to flaunt flamboyance occur from the Fantasy Street Fair to Captain Morgan's Parade.
SCARY FUN: Don't miss the parade of furred and feathered fashionistas at the Pets Masquerade Parade (Oct. 22; 1500 Reynolds St.) or the Masquerade March when a cavalcade of costumed characters career from Key West Cemetery through Old Town.
The Parade of the Lost Souls
Vancouver, B.C.
Oct. 27, 2007; 6-10 p.m.
www.publicdreams.org
KNOW: Vancouver's spooky goings-on are courtesy of the Public Dreams Society, which also lights up the East Side with July's Illuminares lantern festival.
WHERE: Grandview's public spaces are overrun by ghouls and costumed cavorters as this much-loved parade stomps through Vancouver's lesbian neighborhood once again, starting at William and Cotton.
DRESS: The Parade of Lost Souls sees costumed marchers, dancers and assorted chaotic and colorful characters carouse through Grandview's green spaces.
SCARY FUN: Frighteningly good fun is to be had at the annual BOO! Halloween Vancouver party (Oct. 27, 2007; www.halloweenvancouver.com), a popular fundraiser for the Vancouver Men's Chorus. Girls can sashay along to a Halloween party at Lick (Oct. 31, 2007; www.markjames.com).
To make the most of the night, reserve a table well in advance for one of the Drive's gay and lesbian-popular haunts, such as Havana or Stella's
New York City
Oct. 31, 2007; 7-9 p.m.
www.halloween-nyc.com
KNOW: New York City's carnival started as a gay event with 150 people. The Halloween Parade is now the world's largest Halloween event, attracting nearly 2 million people.
WHERE: The parade careers up Sixth Avenue from Spring to 22nd streets, through Chelsea from the Village. Masks, headdresses, wigs and wings flood gay bars in Chelsea, the Village, West Fourth and Sixth.
DRESS: Anyone in costume is welcome to join in as seething seas of cross-dressers sway through the streets. It might all be good fun, but this is New York and it's competitive. Undercover agents award prizes for the best costumes, which are often pieces of performance art. SCARY FUN: The best place to congregate is around Christopher Street and Seventh Avenue or in Washington Square Park near NYU.
West Hollywood Halloween Costume Carnival
Los Angeles
Oct. 31, 2007; 6 p.m.
www.visitwesthollywood.com; 310-289-2525
KNOW: Twenty-five years ago, WeHo boys spilled out of bars, blocking Santa Monica Boulevard and stopping traffic in a spontaneous gathering of drag, costumes and bare bodies. It's evolved from one gay evening to an event swarming with people who come hundreds of miles from all around Southern California. Creative costumes used to outnumber spectators; now there are more people not in costume. Santa Monica Boulevard closes at 3 p.m. and vendors, radio stations, DJs, performers and hundreds of thousands of onlookers descend.
WHERE: The heart of West Hollywood; Santa Monica Boulevard between Sweetzer and Doheny; Robertson Boulevard between Santa Monica and Melrose Avenue and in many bars and restaurants along the way. Gay bars are packed; dancing and partying goes on until the early hours.
DRESS: Los Angeles' galaxy of entertainment-industry egos makes WeHo's Halloween super-competitive, often courtesy of real studio costumes. Picture 25 red, white and blue debutantes or a phalanx of gladiators plunging down Santa Monica Boulevard. Tacky, clever and the more over-the-top the better is the L.A. mantra. Mardi Gras-type garb, drag, military and minimal all star. SCARY FUN: Here Bar, the Abbey, Rage, Ultra Suede, and Factory throb with life. More costumes shimmer in the clubs than on the streets. The crowd tends to be gayer at Here and the Abbey later in the evening.
To get the most out of the party, you need to dress up. Walk the boulevard, popping in and out of bars along the way (beware the prohibitive club cover charges). Allow extra time to make your way along the boulevard -- depending how good you look, it can take up to an hour per block, with suburbanites stopping you every five feet for photos.
Halloween 24
New Orleans, La.
Oct. 25-28, 2007
www.halloweenneworleans.comKNOW: The 24th Halloween is a series of events benefiting Lazarus House, a home for men and women with HIV/AIDS whose families cannot take care of them.
WHERE: Head for the Bourbon Pub and Parade club. Bodies fill the venue and spill onto Bourbon Street from midday Thursday till the early hours of Monday.
DRESS: For the circuit party, originality is key -- it's about how creative you can get. Costumes are always over-the-top, from a 7-foot tall drag queen dressed as the Chiquita banana girl to an airport tower complete with lights. SCARY FUN: The costume-obligatory Wild Kingdom Costume Dance Extravaganza (Oct. 27, 2007, The Sugar Mill, 10 p.m.-4 a.m.; $75) is the major event and the main reason to sashay down South this October. Don't even think about skipping the adornment.
This year's theme is "Wild Kingdom" -- so get in character and parade through the French Quarter to bask in attention
Fantasy Fest and Halloween
Key West, Fla.Oct. 19-28, 2007
www.fantasyfest.net ; 305-296-1817
KNOW: A little bit of Mardi Gras, a little bit of Halloween and a lot of fun with Florida's finest.
WHERE: The bars and restaurants around Duval Street, between Eaton and South streets, see most fantasy action take place.
DRESS: A cacophony of opportunities to flaunt flamboyance occur from the Fantasy Street Fair to Captain Morgan's Parade.
SCARY FUN: Don't miss the parade of furred and feathered fashionistas at the Pets Masquerade Parade (Oct. 22; 1500 Reynolds St.) or the Masquerade March when a cavalcade of costumed characters career from Key West Cemetery through Old Town.
The Parade of the Lost Souls
Vancouver, B.C.
Oct. 27, 2007; 6-10 p.m.
www.publicdreams.org
KNOW: Vancouver's spooky goings-on are courtesy of the Public Dreams Society, which also lights up the East Side with July's Illuminares lantern festival.
WHERE: Grandview's public spaces are overrun by ghouls and costumed cavorters as this much-loved parade stomps through Vancouver's lesbian neighborhood once again, starting at William and Cotton.
DRESS: The Parade of Lost Souls sees costumed marchers, dancers and assorted chaotic and colorful characters carouse through Grandview's green spaces.
SCARY FUN: Frighteningly good fun is to be had at the annual BOO! Halloween Vancouver party (Oct. 27, 2007; www.halloweenvancouver.com), a popular fundraiser for the Vancouver Men's Chorus. Girls can sashay along to a Halloween party at Lick (Oct. 31, 2007; www.markjames.com).
To make the most of the night, reserve a table well in advance for one of the Drive's gay and lesbian-popular haunts, such as Havana or Stella's
Gay India Latest News A Taboo Subject
The gay rights movement in India may be given a boost if the National AIDS Control Organization continues to successfully lobby the government.
The group, the principal governing body for HIV/AIDS, established under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, has called for homosexuality to be legalized.
The National AIDS Control Organization filed an affidavit in Delhi High Court supporting the call to scrap Section 377 of Indian Penal Code, which declares homosexuality an offense. The law prohibits "carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal."
Despite having an ancient history, homosexuality is still considered a taboo subject by both society and the government. India's anti-gay laws are courtesy of British imperialism, harking back to 1860.
In evidence before the Delhi high court, NACO said that more than 8 percent of gay men in India were infected with HIV, compared to fewer than 1 percent of the general population. The Supreme Court sent the case back to the Delhi high court.
Figures released by the United Nations in May estimated that about 5.7 million Indians lived with AIDS
None of the major Indian political parties has endorsed gay rights in its campaign. The minor political parties choose to either ignore the issue or view homosexuality as a Western decadence.
The group, the principal governing body for HIV/AIDS, established under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, has called for homosexuality to be legalized.
The National AIDS Control Organization filed an affidavit in Delhi High Court supporting the call to scrap Section 377 of Indian Penal Code, which declares homosexuality an offense. The law prohibits "carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal."
Despite having an ancient history, homosexuality is still considered a taboo subject by both society and the government. India's anti-gay laws are courtesy of British imperialism, harking back to 1860.
In evidence before the Delhi high court, NACO said that more than 8 percent of gay men in India were infected with HIV, compared to fewer than 1 percent of the general population. The Supreme Court sent the case back to the Delhi high court.
Figures released by the United Nations in May estimated that about 5.7 million Indians lived with AIDS
None of the major Indian political parties has endorsed gay rights in its campaign. The minor political parties choose to either ignore the issue or view homosexuality as a Western decadence.
Gay Headlines Pry This Vibrator From My Cold, Dead Hand
The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to hear a challenge to Alabama's ban on the sale of sex toys, ending a nine-year legal battle and sending a warning to store owners to clean off their shelves.
An adult-store owner had asked the justices to throw out the law as an unconstitutional intrusion into the privacy of the bedroom. But the Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal, leaving intact a lower-court ruling that upheld the law.
Sherri Williams, owner of Pleasures stores in Huntsville and Decatur, said she was disappointed, but plans to sue again on First Amendment free speech grounds.
"My motto has been 'They are going to have to pry this vibrator from my cold, dead hand.' I refuse to give up," she said.
Gay Travel Is The Latest Buzz
MUMBAI: At Mumbai’s Kesari travels it is a toss-up between My Prince Charming offering tours for men - the men’s way, or My Fair Lady aimed at the woman who wants to let her hair down in the company of other women.
Gender specific international tours are gaining ground, as outbound tourists move beyond the catch all family-group tours. Though still largely stereotypical, with fashion shows for women and laddish activities for men, travel companies in India are experimenting with programmes worked with a focus on the travellers’ gender.
Among the early starters, Kesari travels has built up a community around its `My Fair Lady’ travellers. The women are offered a Club card, with discounts from card associate companies such as Tanishq, VLCC and others.
They also keep the link alive through get-togethers organised periodically. On offer are a variety of domestic and international destinations. Says Swati Kulkarni, who went on one such trip to Singapore last year, ”I had the time of my life, without having to worry about who was watching.’’ Says Mercury travels vice-chairman Ashwini Kakkar, “Women travellers have specific needs that are being targeted by the travel industry through the world.
Hotels have women-only floors and have begun to routinely treat women differently from their male clientele.
The men’s tours at Kesari focus on activities like scuba diving and speed boating. But there are other tour companies like Minago travels, that promise `much more fun.’ Targetted at `men only’, the tour operator based in suburban Mumbai has put up hoardings advertising tours to Thailand. strong>>Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Globally, special interest group tours cover almost everything from bicycle tours in the French Alps to wine and cheese specials. Hundreds of websites offer a range of gender specific tours. Gay tourism has also emerged as a niche business opportunity ably supported by gay guides to most cities detailing places to hang out and meet other like minded people.
“Some tour operators offer outbound tours to groups of gay people , but these are not advertised for obvious reasons,” says a Mumbai-based gay activist. Segmentation of travel into special products for niche audiences is a sign of a maturing market.Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Gender specific international tours are gaining ground, as outbound tourists move beyond the catch all family-group tours. Though still largely stereotypical, with fashion shows for women and laddish activities for men, travel companies in India are experimenting with programmes worked with a focus on the travellers’ gender.
Among the early starters, Kesari travels has built up a community around its `My Fair Lady’ travellers. The women are offered a Club card, with discounts from card associate companies such as Tanishq, VLCC and others.
They also keep the link alive through get-togethers organised periodically. On offer are a variety of domestic and international destinations. Says Swati Kulkarni, who went on one such trip to Singapore last year, ”I had the time of my life, without having to worry about who was watching.’’ Says Mercury travels vice-chairman Ashwini Kakkar, “Women travellers have specific needs that are being targeted by the travel industry through the world.
Hotels have women-only floors and have begun to routinely treat women differently from their male clientele.
The men’s tours at Kesari focus on activities like scuba diving and speed boating. But there are other tour companies like Minago travels, that promise `much more fun.’ Targetted at `men only’, the tour operator based in suburban Mumbai has put up hoardings advertising tours to Thailand. strong>>Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Globally, special interest group tours cover almost everything from bicycle tours in the French Alps to wine and cheese specials. Hundreds of websites offer a range of gender specific tours. Gay tourism has also emerged as a niche business opportunity ably supported by gay guides to most cities detailing places to hang out and meet other like minded people.
“Some tour operators offer outbound tours to groups of gay people , but these are not advertised for obvious reasons,” says a Mumbai-based gay activist. Segmentation of travel into special products for niche audiences is a sign of a maturing market.Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Russian President Vladimir Putin Spells Trouble For Gays
The latest news for gays abroad is Russian president Vladimir Putin's admission that he would stand for the post of prime minister is a worrying sign for gay rights groups in the country, human rights activists have warned.
The move, announced last Monday, is being condemned by human rights groups, who have been horrified by the attacks on free speech and gay rights in the country during Mr Putin’s time in office.
An Amnesty International spokesman told pinknews.co.uk: “Amnesty International has serious concerns about the Russian government’s treatment of LGBT rights.
“We’ve had numerous homophobic attacks in Russia, some of them fatal.
“The authorities have failed to tackle discrimination because of sexual orientation.”
Should Putin become prime minister the post of president will in all probability be reduced to a toothless decoration, with Mr Putin continuing to exercise extensive control over the country.
For the Russian gay community, such an eventuality would signal a depressing development, wiping away any chance of seeing tangible change in the country.
Moscow’s mayor, Yuri Luzhkov is closely tied to Mr Putin. He is well known for his homophobic sentiments and banned a Gay Pride march in the capital in 2006.
Amnesty’s spokesman said: “LGBT people have been subject to violent attacks while attending clubs in Moscow.
“In 2006 the Gay Pride march was banned in Moscow.
“The Russian Orthodox and Muslim leaders have publicly criticised Pride and made homophobic statements.”An attempt to hold a Pride march in 2007 were denounced by the Mayor as “satanic”. For the second year in a row it degenerated into violent clashes with homophobic extremists.Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
The move, announced last Monday, is being condemned by human rights groups, who have been horrified by the attacks on free speech and gay rights in the country during Mr Putin’s time in office.
An Amnesty International spokesman told pinknews.co.uk: “Amnesty International has serious concerns about the Russian government’s treatment of LGBT rights.
“We’ve had numerous homophobic attacks in Russia, some of them fatal.
“The authorities have failed to tackle discrimination because of sexual orientation.”
Should Putin become prime minister the post of president will in all probability be reduced to a toothless decoration, with Mr Putin continuing to exercise extensive control over the country.
For the Russian gay community, such an eventuality would signal a depressing development, wiping away any chance of seeing tangible change in the country.
Moscow’s mayor, Yuri Luzhkov is closely tied to Mr Putin. He is well known for his homophobic sentiments and banned a Gay Pride march in the capital in 2006.
Amnesty’s spokesman said: “LGBT people have been subject to violent attacks while attending clubs in Moscow.
“In 2006 the Gay Pride march was banned in Moscow.
“The Russian Orthodox and Muslim leaders have publicly criticised Pride and made homophobic statements.”An attempt to hold a Pride march in 2007 were denounced by the Mayor as “satanic”. For the second year in a row it degenerated into violent clashes with homophobic extremists.Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Gays In India My wife says she is a lesbian. Can you please cure her?"
'Unnatural offence'
It has been a long, strange trip towards coming out of the closet for lesbians like Malobika in conservative India, where same-sex relationships are illegal and almost blasphemous.
The 145-year-old colonial Indian Penal Code clearly describes a same sex relationship as an "unnatural offence".
These days, there is a greater openness about the gay community in the big cities. But homophobia is still pretty rampant
In a largely patriarchal society, lesbians bear the brunt of social ostracisation and the law more than gay men. In many states, lesbians have taken their lives after facing harassment at home and outside.
Malobika and her friends have been luckier - "We are educated and have a class advantage," as one of them says.
Born to a mechanical engineer father and a homemaker mother, Malobika discovered her sexuality when she was 17. Some 18 years later, when her parents were frantically looking around for a suitable groom, she finally told them the truth.
"My mother said she did not understand what I was saying. It took some time for the whole thing to sink in," she said, sitting in a smoky teashop in downtown Calcutta.
Five years ago, Malobika along with five other lesbians started up a support group called Sappho named after the Greek lyric poet.
They run a helpline, publish a magazine and take up cases of human rights abuses.
Anguished world
The helpline has become their window to the dark world of Indian lesbians.
The new openness often masks the frustrations within
Most of the women who call in say they have been forcibly married off by their parents.
When they tell the truth, they are thrown out of their homes by their spouses, parents and relatives.
Most of these hapless women suffer from extremely low esteem and say that something is gravely wrong with them.
"Am I normal? Am I like other women? Tell me please," asks an anguished caller on the Sappho helpline.
A panicky man asks, "My wife says she is a lesbian. Can you please cure her?"
The gay march in Calcutta has become an annual feature
Sappho has a psychiatrist on the line, who counsels these panicky women - and men.
Homophobia, say support groups, is acute in India. Malobika says when parents find out - or the girl tells them - the truth, they run to the doctor.
"The doctor typically tells the girl to swim, cook and knit. 'That way she will become a girl again,' they say.
"The parents then usually take the girl home and shut her up, cutting her off from the outside world."
Many girls from the villages Greater acceptance
escape to the big city after being thrown out of their homes.
Malobika remembers one 28-year-old girl who ran away to Calcutta to be with her partner and take up a job in a beauty parlour. Four years later, her estranged parents came to visit her - and since then have accepted the relationship.
Pavan Dhal is worried about "risky sexual behaviour" among the gays
In big cities like Calcutta, there is slightly more acceptance of same sex relationships these days. As in other parts of the world, India has seen a growing gay and lesbian movement.
"These days, there is a greater openness about the gay community in the big cities. But homophobia is still pretty rampant," says Rafiquel Haque, 31, a theatre actor and gay rights activist.
This means that when bright, young men like Rafiquel decide to come out of the closet and begin talking to the media, they lose some friends.
One reason is that gay behaviour is also regarded as sexually predatory.
Rafiquel says he was friends with a "liberal" artist couple and their only son - till they saw him on a television show on gay issues.
"The moment they came to know I was gay they stopped talking. They stopped their son from meeting me. His mother told me, 'If my son becomes like you, I will commit suicide'."
Coming out of the closet, however, is easier now: the eastern West Bengal state alone has some nine gay and lesbian support groups.
Carnival
Rafiquel, who was instrumental in setting up one in 1993, says they reached out to 5,000 gay men in the state within three years.
The government says public morals need to be protected
Two years ago, he organised a same sex mardi gras in Calcutta. Since then it has become a regular yearly event.
Plays on gay issues are staged, members debate community issues, and books and journals are sold at this merry fortnight-long carnival.
It climaxes with a colourful march through the streets of Calcutta - last year as many 300 gays, lesbians and transgender people participated in the march.
But life is still not easy even for a gay man in India - he usually faces derision at work, and struggles to find a partner.
Most gay men usually cruise darkly lit streets and unkempt parks and often get picked up by police looking for bribes.
"It's not easy to meet a partner. I still don't have a lasting partner. It can be very lonely sometimes," says Pavan Dhal, 36, who heads a support group.
"There's also a lot of risky sexual behaviour. Its not a very happy situation that way". Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Naked Boys vs. Naked Men Tamils Most Popular Storys
Naked boys vs. naked men - notes from a blond
Advocate, The, July 8, 2003 by Bruce Vilanch
Naked Boys Singing, the Cats of gay theater, is celebrating its 400th year off-Broadway. I'm proud to have had a hand in the show, although a hand was really not what I had hoped to put in. NBS, as the director is fond of calling it (this makes it sound more like an all-news network than an all-nude musical), was an act of desperation, put together by the leadership of a gay Hollywood theater company who found that audiences wouldn't go to see a gay show unless they knew there would be some gay or straight or alive and breathing flesh to look at. Serious multiethnic cries for understanding just didn't draw without a really big hanging garden of forbidden fruit.
So the show's creator and director, Robert Schrock, said, Let's meet the enemy head on, and I mean that literally. Naked Boys Singing--the title said it all. And the audiences fought each other to get in. Many years later naked boys are still unveiling themselves nightly on stages in cities around the world.
Among the many strange phenomena that have followed is the acceptance of NBS as a girls'-night-out, Chippendales sort of thing, although none of that kind of business occurs in the show. It's a bunch of gay guys in mostly gay situations, including a love affair and, in its first production at least, a song about endless testing in a hospital. The fact that NBS is basically a gay show hasn't seemed to hurt it with a straight audience.
A weird reversal of fortune has been happening at Take Me Out, Richard Greenberg's wonderful Broadway play about what happens when a baseball superstar comes out. It's not a gay play at all, being more about bigotry, civil rights, sports, ego, the team mentality, brain versus brawn, religion, and how big money corrupts moral people. Only two characters in it are homosexual, but almost all the dozen or so actors in the all-male cast spend a lot of time taking showers fully naked, as far downstage as you can get without asking the American Express gold-card ticket holders to scrub your back. Fastballs of important dialogue are hurled at the audience while nude dudes splash around, scratch themselves, and towel down. It's quite a day at the ballpark.
And that has been identified as one of the marketing problems facing the play, which has probably won this year's Tony by the time you read this Gay audiences, who would be expected to flock to a show full of hunks showing off their trunks, have flocked. Now it's time to attract the straight theatergoers who are more interested in everything else the play has to offer. And they are proving to be afraid to come.
The male nudity tums the straight men off and, as it is not emphasized for entertainment value (as in NBS), doesn't seem to be a magnet for women either. "Serves them right," a Broadway producer friend of mine opined. "It doesn't have anything to do with the show. It's a good play that would be selling out now if they hadn't pandered to the gay audience." But Take Me Out doesn't pander. NBS panders joyously, starting with the opening number, "Gratuitous Nudity." The nudity in TMO is far from gratuitous. It is essential. It puts the physical action of the play where the emotional action of the story really takes place--the showers.
What's the one thing we always hear about gays in the military or professional sports? Nobody wants to shower with them. While I've always thought this problem could be solved by putting in shower stalls--even at the Pentagon, where a toilet seat costs $50,000, it would be money well spent--there's a bigger principle at work here.
The primal fear straight men have about being around gay men is: What will happen when everybody is in their most vulnerable and potentially sexual place? The drama being played out onstage is in many instances being played out in the audience. It's genuine theater, not necessarily comfortable, but tough and engaging and worth the time and the money. It's a play Ralph Kramden and the boys at the Racoon Lodge need to see. They can skip Naked Boys Singing. I'll even forgo my buck-fifty royalty check. Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
Advocate, The, July 8, 2003 by Bruce Vilanch
Naked Boys Singing, the Cats of gay theater, is celebrating its 400th year off-Broadway. I'm proud to have had a hand in the show, although a hand was really not what I had hoped to put in. NBS, as the director is fond of calling it (this makes it sound more like an all-news network than an all-nude musical), was an act of desperation, put together by the leadership of a gay Hollywood theater company who found that audiences wouldn't go to see a gay show unless they knew there would be some gay or straight or alive and breathing flesh to look at. Serious multiethnic cries for understanding just didn't draw without a really big hanging garden of forbidden fruit.
So the show's creator and director, Robert Schrock, said, Let's meet the enemy head on, and I mean that literally. Naked Boys Singing--the title said it all. And the audiences fought each other to get in. Many years later naked boys are still unveiling themselves nightly on stages in cities around the world.
Among the many strange phenomena that have followed is the acceptance of NBS as a girls'-night-out, Chippendales sort of thing, although none of that kind of business occurs in the show. It's a bunch of gay guys in mostly gay situations, including a love affair and, in its first production at least, a song about endless testing in a hospital. The fact that NBS is basically a gay show hasn't seemed to hurt it with a straight audience.
A weird reversal of fortune has been happening at Take Me Out, Richard Greenberg's wonderful Broadway play about what happens when a baseball superstar comes out. It's not a gay play at all, being more about bigotry, civil rights, sports, ego, the team mentality, brain versus brawn, religion, and how big money corrupts moral people. Only two characters in it are homosexual, but almost all the dozen or so actors in the all-male cast spend a lot of time taking showers fully naked, as far downstage as you can get without asking the American Express gold-card ticket holders to scrub your back. Fastballs of important dialogue are hurled at the audience while nude dudes splash around, scratch themselves, and towel down. It's quite a day at the ballpark.
And that has been identified as one of the marketing problems facing the play, which has probably won this year's Tony by the time you read this Gay audiences, who would be expected to flock to a show full of hunks showing off their trunks, have flocked. Now it's time to attract the straight theatergoers who are more interested in everything else the play has to offer. And they are proving to be afraid to come.
The male nudity tums the straight men off and, as it is not emphasized for entertainment value (as in NBS), doesn't seem to be a magnet for women either. "Serves them right," a Broadway producer friend of mine opined. "It doesn't have anything to do with the show. It's a good play that would be selling out now if they hadn't pandered to the gay audience." But Take Me Out doesn't pander. NBS panders joyously, starting with the opening number, "Gratuitous Nudity." The nudity in TMO is far from gratuitous. It is essential. It puts the physical action of the play where the emotional action of the story really takes place--the showers.
What's the one thing we always hear about gays in the military or professional sports? Nobody wants to shower with them. While I've always thought this problem could be solved by putting in shower stalls--even at the Pentagon, where a toilet seat costs $50,000, it would be money well spent--there's a bigger principle at work here.
The primal fear straight men have about being around gay men is: What will happen when everybody is in their most vulnerable and potentially sexual place? The drama being played out onstage is in many instances being played out in the audience. It's genuine theater, not necessarily comfortable, but tough and engaging and worth the time and the money. It's a play Ralph Kramden and the boys at the Racoon Lodge need to see. They can skip Naked Boys Singing. I'll even forgo my buck-fifty royalty check. Go where they go. Join Gay.date.com today!
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