For the first time, a pride parade at a city college!

It was a watershed moment for sexual minorities in not just Hyderabad but all of Telangana as a pride parade held in the premises of a city college for the first time ever. The Indian School of Business (ISB), Gachibowli, revelled in rainbow hues on Saturday as over 150 people — students, LGBTQIA+ rights activists and aam janata — marched together with pride to send out the message that love is never wrong and has no gender.It is understandable why the queer community of Hyderbad thinks that June 29 will go down in history as a landmark day for LGBT rights.
“This is the first time an educational institution has opened its doors for a pride parade. It’s a huge step forward for all of Telangana. It’s important to have such gender sensitisation events in educational spaces — both government and private institutions — as they help in building a strong foundation for social inclusivity,” exudes Anil Kohli, vice president of the Mobbera Foundation, a LGBTQIA+ collective, and one of the organisers of the event.

The event kicked off with a pride rally as participants wielding rainbow flags and colourful umbrellas, some flaunting painted faces and funky props, walked from the institute’s corporate building to the auditorium, singing and cheering with joy. “We were mulling over the idea of hosting a Pride Parade for a long time. In the past we have organised events surrounding the theme, but they were not of this magnitude. From the very beginning, both the student community and management of the institute have been very supportive of the idea.
The idea was to instill a sense of comfort and create a safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community members in the institute,” says Sreyas Khatta, a final year student and the student body president of the institute. The rally was followed by a slew of cultural performances by the institute’s students and representatives of various city-based LGBTQIA+ forums in the auditorium.
From a belly dance performance by Sravan Kumar Telu, one of the very few male belly dancers in South India, to an expressionist dance recital, Duct Tape by Patruni Chidananda Sastry and a skit, Samaj Ke Sam Ki Laash about the trauma and discrimination endured by the community, the acts were entertaining as well as informative. Various community members from the MNCs also addressed the crowd and shared their coming-out stories and moving accounts of struggles.

“It’s good to have pride events outside the regular venues in the city because that way more and more people will get to know and understand the LGBTQI+ community,” said Shravan.
Buoyed by the response, the students have resolved to conduct more such programmes in the future. “We plan to have more panel discussions, theatre performances and standup comedy shows,” said Sreyas, signing off.