"Here's What It is Like Growing Up Queer In a Small Town In India"

Poet and queer activist Aditya Tiwari takes a deep-dive into his experiences of growing up in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, at a time when homosexuality was a punishable offence.

- Aditya Tiwari

It’s heartening to see that times have changed—the world is a lot different than what it used to be a decade ago...when I was growing up. And it is primarily because we are finally trying to understand the nuances surrounding gender and sexuality.

My childhood was tough, just like it was for most children from the queer community. As a teenager trying to find the right words and terms that would help articulate my existence, I battled constant discrimination for being gay. Other children in school tried to put me in a box and, as a result, I was often subjected to derogatory terms and physical abuse. This hatred followed me in my adult life, too, where even strangers thought it was okay to harass me. But, through it all, I was determined to understand who I really am. It was important for me to put into words what my true identity is, especially in a country where the queer community does not have the same rights as cis-het people.