It is pertinent to acknowledge and appreciate the fact that rising against an oppressor does not necessarily have to be as violent as the sentiment suggests. It can be a nuanced and creative expression, be it through dance, music, or drama.
One fears that which one cannot fathom, cannot make sense of. This stands largely true for the LGBTQ+ community. Even people from urban spaces adhere to the mainstream stereotypes about them that are built into our pop culture. It has to be recognised that history has been despotic and unfair to the LGBTQ+ community as their voices are seldom heard and have often been suppressed. It becomes imperative to battle not only stereotypes, but also to let the world know that they exist through a form of expression which has been part of our tradition since time immemorial, something that resonates with a larger audience. Therefore, drama is one aspect of performing arts through which the LGBTQ+ community has been able to grapple these issues.
Mahesh Dattani’s play, Dance Like a Man, showcases the stereotype of dance being a gendered art form, the flip side of patriarchy, and subtly refers to assumptions we have of the LGBTQ+ community. It primarily revolves around the life of Jairaj and his passion for dance and portrays how a man dancing is frowned upon. The play takes the idea of how our conditioning moulds us to become the people we are, and how sometimes we get stuck in the whirlpool of beliefs and traditions, not being able to move with the times.
While Dance Like a Man deals with gender, On a Muggy Night in Mumbai is the first Indian play to openly deal with the topic of homosexuality. Dattani seamlessly and dexterously uses his space, in addition to the other facets of drama, to make an impact. The space becomes symbolic of the inner turmoil of the various characters. The characters of the play represent the varied perspectives and coping mechanisms of being part of the LGBTQ+ community. Dattani tries to delve into the human psyche and unveils the complexities of human relationships through quotidian instances from society. Thereby, as a result, he delves into the deconstruction of the taboo of homosexuality.
A form of social awareness and activism that has an impact on our society by directly interacting with the audience is “nukkad natak” or street theatre. Nukkad nataks are vehicles of dialogue that can initiate change by bringing forth social issues in a manner that can be identified by the layperson. The amalgamation of education, awareness, and engagement in spontaneous forms of expression like that of street theatre strikes a chord. From theatre groups in schools and colleges to Asmita Theatre, such organisations have taken it upon themselves to bring about a dire change in our society through their creativity and finesse.
The vehicle of drama has been the means for a renaissance in Kerala on many fronts. Here, it is pertinent to talk about the first all-trans theatre group “Mazhavil Dhwani” of Kerala, who have come together to showcase their everyday lives to their audience. These fifteen members come from different walks of life, from comedians to actors, to beauticians, among others. It is an offshoot of the Ernakulam-based Dhwayah Arts and Charitable Society.
They come together to express their stories through what they call Parayan Maranna Kadhakal, which roughly translates to “the stories that were forgotten to be told”. They do not stick to a particular script and let the stories flow organically, which adds to the beauty of the drama. They believe that theatre is a powerful tool which helps in instigating thought-provoking debates and conveying a message in a conducive manner.
One can also witness how the culture of cross-dressing has helped the LGBTQ+ community find their identity and freedom recently. However, mainstream cinema has always ridiculed the act of cross-dressing and simply used the notion drag to provide comic relief. The film Daayra, directed by Amol Palekar, presents the shared journey of a male theatre actor trained to play female roles and a village girl compelled to don a masculine attire. It strives to overthrow gender stereotypes and social attitudes about cross-dressing.
The King of Drag is an ingenious theatre production that depicts an imaginary Mumbai where drag king shows are common. An all-female cast dresses up in masculine garb, embodies male stereotypes and tries to normalise the culture of cross-dressing for women too.
Through dance, poetry, and music, the LGBTQ+ community has found an avenue to fight regressive attitudes. Nowadays, men can be seen donning heels and learning dance forms that are essentially female-dominated such as belly dancing and ballet to propagate awareness.
Through music, several LGBTQ+ artists are showcasing their artistic flair and redeeming their position in society. The album Rainbow Warriors is the epitome of their struggle and passion for music. The queer artist Alisha Batth recently got her big break with Coke Studio India and sang a song in her mother tongue, thereby providing a glimpse of hope to up and coming queer artists
Poetry and radio have become agents for changing social attitudes with individuals like Bharath Divakar and Alok Vaid Menon striving to normalise the concept of identity and gender fluidity through their poetry performances. Harish Iyer has also hosted Gaydio, a radio show that encouraged people belonging to the community to come out of their closets.
Dancing Queen, India’s most successful transgender dance troupe’s journey has been like a rollercoaster with a share of good and bad experiences. Because of their visibility and popularity in public spaces, transgenders are being targeted for sexual deviance and gender nonconformity. Nevertheless, it is heart-warming to witness big corporations like Godrej encouraging them in their journey to fight injustice through dance.
Mandeep Raikhy, a Delhi based Queer choreographer fought against the archaic Section 377 through a dance drama called Queen Size. It portrays a sensual encounter between two male protagonists through an intimate dance scene in their bedroom. His aim was to make the audience experience the portrayal of homosexual intimacy through his dancing and thus, normalise it.
It has to be acknowledged that in our contemporary times, the audience of the varied performing arts is restricted to artists, academicians, the intelligentsia, and people who have an interest in them. In short, performing arts are not part of our mainstream forms of art and are thus not celebrated as much. They have been overpowered and overshadowed by cinema in such a manner that they are bound to retreat to the shadows, and cater to only a particular kind of audience. This hinders their popularity and in turn, defeats their purpose in more ways than one.
The fact remains that although forms of performing arts, emerging from or related to the LGBTQ+ community, is gaining relatively widespread acceptance, especially after the decriminalisation of Section 377, a large section of society remains unaware about its existence. The representation of the LGBTQ+ community in the performing arts has been unable to achieve the popularity and the extensive reach to the audience that mainstream cinema casually enjoys. Therefore, it becomes necessary that mainstream cinema gets its representation right. It is upon us, as a society, to revive our age-old traditions, use them as a means to an end to make the world a better place: an inclusive, multifarious, and integrated world.
Smriti has done her BA in Literature from Hindu College, Delhi University and MA in Literature from Jamia Millia Islamia University. She is also an Alumna of SBI Youth for India Fellowship.
In a room of her own, you will often find Smriti speak to spectral masked vigilantes who save the world of mortals during nocturnal hours. As a sensorial hybrid, she believes in the sight of bright colours, sound of mountain rivers, loving touch of jumping puppies, and fragrance of old books. Smriti aspires to work as a teaching faculty to create a dialogic classroom space with vibrant discussions.
This article achieves a presentation of examples that truly invites one to explore the arena of performing arts beyond the false dichotomy of genders presented to us. While the necessary list of artistic performances mentioned here is an ode to variety and perspectives…I really resonated with what was said about the representation in mainstream media. As long as we remain unaware, mainstream arenas would keeping giving us a superficial picture of a plethora of identities and communities that were erstwhile ignored and will continue to make it a subject that would be awkwardly looked at. Popular culture shapes the society and it is exactly where representation matters the most.
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