The Men Who Are Gay For Pay

Young male models and struggling actors — who are straight — are willing to go ‘gay-for-pay’ on various LGBT dating and hookup apps in the country. While prostitution has always been a hush-hush affair on these apps, for the last two years, it has become a rather prominent feature. This might be because of a dearth of paid gigs and sky-high living costs in big cities, but is it also a marker for a paradigm shift in sexuality and sexual behaviour?

- Arnesh Ghose

Their profile photographs usually have muscled torso closeups, or shirtless photographs of themselves, with the head cropped out. Some of them – the more experienced ones – don’t mind showing their faces. Their profile names read “paid top” or “hunk top pd” or “hot top pd” or “massgr pd top” or “nothng is 4 free”. Earlier, they would just call their profiles “massage anyone?” or “massager top”, and if you wanted more than an oil rub, you would have to hint at it. They would then tell you how much they charged for a hand job, a blow job or “full fun”. Most of these men are models and aspiring actors who have washed ashore at Mumbai from different parts of the country — mostly Delhi and Punjab — and need to find a way to sustain their lifestyles. This includes rent, gym memberships, protein supplements, food, conveyance, grooming products, clothes and enough money to party at the right places — all a very expensive business. Many struggling actors and models don’t have degrees to fall back on, have left their families behind and want to make their glitzy dreams come true, only to realize that the industry is a cruel and unforgiving place — it’s not easy to get a gig. So, when they find out about gay dating apps and the scope to make good money from just a few hours of sex, it seems like a neat proposition.