NEW DELHI: Thousands of people danced, sang and cheered through the streets of Delhi on Sunday in a colourful and vibrant celebration for the first gay pride parade since gay sex was made legal in India.
Under a huge rainbow flag, to the sound of drums, whistles and horns, 2,000 gay activists and supporters clad in feather face masks shouted slogans and waved placards as they marched through the capital of this still sexually conservative country.
“Today is about saying that we are gay and we are proud. We are not going anywhere, we are a part of society, and today we can celebrate being different,” said Amit Agrawal, one of the parade organisers.
The parade brought traffic to a halt in the commercial heart of the city, leaving bemused drivers watching in astonishment as kissing male couples, dancing transsexuals in bright pink skirts and thousands of rainbow flags went past.
While the previous two annual marches were billed as protests against legislation that criminalised homosexual sex in the world’s largest democracy, in July last year a landmark case in the Delhi High Court finally overturned the colonial-era Section 377 of India’s penal code after nine years of legal action.
“Last year it was about protest, but this year it is all about celebration. It has only been a year, but it has been a huge year,” said Hillol Dutta, a gay activist.
