Navigating Lives, Negotiating Desires

Patna Pride Parade took place last month. Many moving and inspiring queer life stories were shared at the event

- Aishwarya Raj

“SHOULD I wear a sari or a western dress for the Parade? I also have a performance to give. I hope I don’t mess it up,” Masoom muttered as she sat down to catch her breath. She works at Satrangi Dostana Restaurant, Bakarganj, Patna, which is run by individuals from the trans community. This community-based organisation was registered by the Bihar government in June 2021 under the 1860 Act and is supported by Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC). I met Masoom at the restaurant a day before the Pride Parade in Patna. 

This Parade has been held in Bihar for the last eight years. This year, Patna Pride Parade took place in July. Dostanasafar, an NGO, was the organiser. Reshma Prasad, trans rights activist, social worker and member of the National Council for Trangender Persons is the founder secretary of Dostanasafar. A team led by Prasad organised the only Pride Parade in and of Bihar. 

Sitting cross-legged at the restaurant, wearing skin-coloured stockings, a black pencil skirt, a grey top and her hair pulled up into a bun, Masoom told me her village is in Danapur, Bihar. “When I was six or seven years old I was sent to the boys’ hostel. I was a boy then. I mean, born as a boy. I felt uncomfortable at that hostel and I told my mother about it.” Masoom was then shifted to a co-ed hostel. “When I was younger and presented as a boy, people used to mock me for my body language, the way I talked. Now, I often pass as a girl, and if someone tries to bully me, I reply at once,” she said.