A queer carnival to remember

Hitec City’s Phoenix Arena came alive with myriad interesting activities as several youngsters, all dressed in bright hues, came together to celebrate the fourth anniversary of Queer Campus Hyderabad.

Sandipan, one of the organisers of the event, said, “Queer Campus has been advocating the cause of the LGBTQ community through various activities around the year. This time, we gathered to raise awareness about the community with fun-filled activities.”

The day started off with an interactive session on ‘Suicidal Tendency and Ageing Factor’ helmed by Neha Vyas, who highlighted the need of the parents to have a keen eye on their children to notice even an inkling of depression or worry. Next in line was the screening of two documentaries — Ladies and Gentlewomen by Malini Jeevarathnam from Chennai and Knock Knock by Moses Tulasi and Ravi Mallepeddi from Hyderabad — that highlighted the causes of the community. The filmmakers were also seen hosting a discussion session post the screening.

The day-long fun sessions resumed after a two-hour lunch break with a painting workshop conducted by artist Sachita Sharma. And that’s not all — as the sun gradually approached the other horizon, soothing cultural performances took the centre stage. Indian classical dance performances were followed by an interesting play. But the most fun part was yet to come: a flash mob and a fashion show by the people of the community, both of which left the audience cheering for more.

“The fashion show had a purple-colour theme from the rainbow colours of the LGBTQ community. We are happy with the support we got. It is not just the members of the community who are here, but others also came to support us. We are especially happy to see parents coming in large numbers for their children who are part of the community,” added Sandipan.