Social media has given rise to a class of so-called influencers, who make a point of visiting every art gallery, fair and museum here and abroad, and then very generously share their experience of seeing the latest exhibitions.” “Friends”.
However, there is a catch. Influencers always pose in front of the displayed works of art in their clothes, which partially affects the display. Art plays second fiddle to the ego of the influential person.
The same can be said of Hoshang Merchant, who, according to Wikipedia, is “a leading voice of gay liberation in India”, and “best known for his anthology on gay writings titled friendship,
When I picked up his new book, rainbow warriors of indiaAkshay K. Co-authored with Rath, I hoped it would be a collection of short biographical sketches of 22 “extraordinary individuals” from India’s gay community. These gay icons have faced adversity to claim their rightful place in society” – to quote vaguely. Any effort to document the Pride movement in India should be appreciated.
However, it proved to be a great deal of Merchant’s self-indulgent and whimsical musings on the life and times of these “stately homosexuals”, a quotable quote from the truly great gay icon, Quentin Crisp, author of the famous work. , naked civil servant (1968) The businessman cannot see beyond himself. One of the ‘Rainbow Warriors’, R. Raj Rao, is a gadfly. I wish Merchant was blessed with Rao’s infectious and irrepressible sense of humor.
Mumbai representation
Most of the notable queers he mentions are from Mumbai, though he makes an exception for filmmakers Rituparno Ghosh and Onir, both of whom are from Kolkata. Quite rightly, there are people like Ashok Row Kavi and Geeta Thadani, who were at the forefront of gay activism in the 70s. From the cultural field there are artist Bhupen Khakhar, poet Adil Jussawala, photographer Sunil Gupta, playwright Mahesh Dattani and dancers Ram Gopal and Navtej Singh Johar, not to forget Merchant too. Quite expectedly, the author has devoted an entire chapter to herself, titled, ‘The grief of becoming Meena Kumari’. Sadly, such a posture is deeply troubling.
What’s worse is that Merchant never stops talking about novelist and poet Vikram Seth and playwright Dattani, because he feels they never came to the fore early, or never came at all. Seth’s early work, golden gate (1986) made their priorities sufficiently clear. There was a certain ambiguity, but it’s foolish to expect everyone to wear their sexuality on their sleeve all the time. Should Merchant be reminded that activism and creativity are not always on the same page?
It is a pity that Merchant never mentioned some of the other important Rainbow Warriors from India. I will limit myself to Kolkata where I grew up. Krishnagopal Malik, a journalist, wrote about the gay scene of Kolkata in the 1940s in his novel which is available in English translation. The late Siddhartha Gautam, one of India’s first LGBTQIA+ activists, co-founded the AIDS anti-discrimination movement around 1989.
One queer activist from the early 90s is Pawan Dhal, who co-organized the Friendship Walk march on 2 July 1999, now called South Asia’s first Pride Walk. Staged by Sudarshan Chakraborty of Sapphire Creations Dance Company exotic flowersIndia’s first queer-themed dance production in 1996. He continues to organize international dance festivals. And there are young performance artist Debashish Paul and designers Nil and Kallol Dutta, both of whom have high visibility. The bibliography in the last pages may be useful.
Lalan by chance
The problem is that famous writers and artists are generally treated with reverence and their work automatically becomes immune from criticism. Merchant “is the author of 25 books of poetry. She was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Queer Lit Fest in 2023.
The reader must evaluate Merchant’s poetry in his new collection Lalan’s bookFor him/herself. Here is a complete poem titled ‘Episode’: I traced out an entire alphabet / With a finger on the thigh / I made a continent / That slipped away without a sighNo invocation of Kali, Ginsberg or Lalan Fakir, the famous philosopher and mystic poet of Bengal, can redeem it.
And now a couplet which is no better than others: Neither the man nor the maid remain dry/ Lalan has grown up/ Lalan cries…
There are some obvious gaps – I divided my heart / into man and woman / to preserve my purity / to heal my heart – But these are few and far between.
cover of Lalan’s book It is a painting, possibly a profile of Merchant, with her hair worn in a top knot. Poor Lalon was indeed a thin old man. The only surviving portrait of him was made by Rabindranath’s elder brother Jyotirindranath Tagore. Merchant appears on the cover again rainbow warrior In a black and white photo. This does not mean that one has named a book of poems after a philosopher-philosopher about whom very little biographical information is available. This picture is just a pure coincidence.
The reviewer is interested in the disappearing heritage and culture of Kolkata.
rainbow warriors of india
Hoshang Merchant, Akshay’s Chariot
HM Books
₹450
Lalan’s book
Hoshang Merchant
HM Books
₹149
published – December 06, 2024 09:30 AM IST
