We spent several months travelling in India as a gay couple, from North to South, and absolutely loved it.
We visited world famous monuments like the Taj Mahal and stunning palaces across Rajasthan. We were in awe at the intense spirituality in Varanasi, chilled in the popular backwaters of Kerala, and loved all the delicious Indian food we tried. But our absolute highlight was the people. The Indians stole our heart. As well as being full of charm and character, they were very hospitable and never disrespectful to us. We found them to be welcoming, curious, very friendly, and eager to show off their country to these two foreigners.
On the face of it, India does not appear to be very gay friendly, particularly as the Supreme Court ruled in 2013 to uphold the colonial laws dating back to 1861 banning sex between two consenting men. Whilst this law was decriminalised by the High Court of Delhi in 2009, it was subsequently overturned by the Supreme Court because the judges concluded that such an amendment should be left to parliament to decide, and not the judiciary. The law is thankfully being reviewed again in the Supreme Court – a testament to how strong the LGTBQ community is in India.
In practice, gay relationships do of course exist and thrive in India, as they do in any other country. However, social norms in India tend to discourage public display of affection no matter sexual orientation.
But do the maths – this is a country with a population of over 1.3 billion people, which means statistically there are around 130 million gay boys waiting to welcome you.
By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at The Nomadic Boys