24 JUNE - JULY 2019
Given the socio-political situation
in Gujarat, how were you able to
convince contributors to collaborate
for the zine?
While we wanted to open up the platform
to local queer artists and art practitioners,
the zine also aims to bring together
artists across South-Asian countries.
The socio-political environment of the
state where we operate from and live
in has not deterred our contributors
from sharing their work with us. On the
contrary, it inspires them, as queer art
is also a medium of responding to daily
scenarios. There were a few people who
were hesitant, though. Some didn’t want
their names to be printed, and perhaps
that has to do with a lack of acceptance
and precarity that prevails here. Despite
everything that is happening around us,
representation is of utmost importance.
When we approach people they
understand that this is exactly the reason
why we need to speak up.
The zine touches upon an array of
subjects ranging from mythology,
sexual practices and menstruation
to parenting, housing, literature and
stories of queer individuals from
smaller metropolitan towns. What is
your curatorial vision?
It’s not only about personalised stories.
Especially in India, if you like talking
about this mixed bag of mythology versus
our sexual practices versus our religious
beliefs versus the almost bureaucratic
kind of problems of where to live, where
does the trans narrative fit in all this? It’s
a combination of disconnected aspects
of our lives that, in fact, encompasses
the reality of queer lives. The idea is to
bring these stories that are usually seen
as separate ideas, together. A big part of
how we curate the content is dependent
on the kind of entries we get. Design
plays a major role in stitching them into
one larger narrative that still holds true to
each individual body of work and artist.
POEMS BY T WITH PHOTOGRAPHS BY ELINA BANERJEE