He's openly gay and has founded, Lakshya Trust, a nonprofit organization dedicated to gay men and HIV/AIDS education.Īt one of the three Lakshya centers in Baroda, Gujarat, a dozen men chat casually in a large office dotted with Hindi language posters and a photograph of two men kissing. Now, at 42, he's considered something of an expert.
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Wearing a traditional orange tunic with a matching scarf tossed over his shoulder, the tall and slender prince said he was 30 years old, when he finally understood who he was sexually. "It's a problematic situation that's not taken seriously," said Powkavi. The closest term is "masti," which means "mischief." So when two men have sex, it's nothing more than "mischief." "'Gay'" is a Western word," said Kavi, 62.
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Ashok Row Kavi, considered India's first openly gay man, explains that India doesn't even have a translation for the term "gay." Is it a kind of disease? Is it a mental disorder? Am I the only one suffering for this mental disorder? I was totally confused about myself," he said. I was confused whether I'm getting attracted toward the same sex. "Being brought up in such a protected atmosphere, there's nobody to share your thoughts, your feelings with anyone. What's a person to think? It's confusing for most people, but particularly a prince, who never even knew what it meant to be "gay." It took a year of an unconsummated marriage, a subsequent divorce and a nervous breakdown to give him some perspective. It's a country where men can walk down the street, holding hands, arms wrapped around each other, but young men and women must cower in parks to sneak a kiss away from their families. After all, it's the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, and some of its famed temples offer graphic murals and sculptures depicting sex, including same-sex sex behavior. India's attitude toward sex, in general, seems hypocritical. Walk past any black-and-yellow taxi at midnight, and you're just as likely to see two men spooning in the front seat as a flashing-neon Ganesha on the dashboard. Sometimes, homosexuality is flat-out ignored. India's attitude toward homosexuality is a combination of homophobia and ignorance. Article 377 criminalizes the act of homosexuality between men. If it's not obvious, the Prince is a gay man, which makes life rather complicated in a country where being gay is illegal. Men from around the world e-mail him, often seeking his advice on homosexuality. Now, though, some of his closest friends are the ones he's met in "pen pal" ads in gay newspapers. His upbringing was so formal he felt more affection toward his nanny than his mother.
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Literally, it's the life of Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil, who was raised in a pink-colored palace located at the bottom of long driveway dotted with purple flowers.