Being out of the closet in India means bracing for a lot of religious backlash from friends, family and random aunties who have suddenly made you their latest case study to kill gossip time. And they are hardwired to not budge, no matter how much you ask them to let you be.
Homophobia that stems out of religious subjugation is, in fact, the holy grail of all homophobias. It is the one place where the axis of godliness unites. The years of strife they have given to each other, trying to prove whose God is mightier, and all they ever needed were the gays to unanimously hate and annoy.
The strife of having to live in such a society is beautifully captured in this music video by openly gay singer Tom Goss. Here, we witness a breezy teenage romance bubbling between a guy and his friend, the preacher’s son, set against the background of a church community ardently taught to condemn homosexuality. And as much as one might hate to accept it, the situation is uncannily similar all over the world, where religious fundamentalism sets the equal rights movement back several years.
The video has been co-produced by The Trevor Project, an organization known for reaching out to and supporting suicidal and in-question gay youngsters.
If someone cannot see the love between two individuals as love, then they are obviously looking through the eyes of hate. And I am pretty sure God doesn’t want that.
P.S – If you are someone who is facing rampant homophobia from someone who claims that he/she can change you, just know that there is nothing wrong with you. You can always reach out to people who love you and talk to them. Don’t let them get to you.