Schedule 2024 – Rainbow Lit Fest

Rainbow Lit Fest – Queer & Inclusive

December 7 & 8, 2024

Gulmohar Park Club, New Delhi

Day 1 Saturday, December 7

The Rainbow Lit Fest – Queer & Inclusive is for adults. We don’t have any child-friendly sessions. Please make note of this to avoid an awkward situation of being refused entry.

Gates open at 10:30 am. Registration from 10:30 am.

venue:	The Playground
	The hosts for the day are Parvati M Krishnan & Shruti Garg
11.00 – 11.15 am	Opening Ceremony
11.20 – 11.55 am	SPOTLIGHT TALK The Quiet Rebellion Hansal Mehta in conversation with Chirag Thakkar
12.00 – 12.35 pm	SPOTLIGHT TALK Ishq Matters: The Radical possibilities of Love Paromita Vohra will be in conversation with Sandip Roy
12.40 – 1.25 pm	PANEL Queer Power Hierarchies: Are We Mirroring Society? In the queer battle for human dignity and rights, seeking acceptance and embracement, are we ourselves all embracing? Are we fixated on mainstream ideas of beauty? Are we considerate towards people with disabilities? Are religion and caste dividing factors? Have we become a reflection of larger society? Aroh Akhun, Abhishek Anicca, Maisnam Arnapal and Hameeda Sayed, in conversation with Sudipta Das
1.30 – 2.15 pm	PANEL Globalisation, decolonisation or localisation: What will work for the queer movement? The effort of acceptance and legal reform across most parts of the world has been about the abolishment of Victorian laws. With globalisation, the West, in general, emerged as a seminal reference point for addressing issues, developing narratives for change and building representation, visibility and a language. Yet, the globalisation of LGBTQIA+ rights has led to a form of colonisation, disconnected from local culture, nuance, sensitivities, language, politics and history. With queerphobia and other forms of hate against minorities on the rise in nations that were once examples of positive change, what strategy should local / national movements adopt? How relevant is the West? Douce Dibondo, Sindhu Rajasekaran, Dhiren Borisa and Vaivab Das in conversation with Dhrubo Jyoti
2.20 – 3.05 pm	PANEL Queer Parents: Yes, They Exist When we talk about parents and families we rarely imagine the parent to be queer. Our context of anything or anyone queer in a family is invariably limited to a child coming out and the struggles that often follow for a queer child and their parents. What if the parent is queer? What does it take to be that parent? What is that home like? How do they engage with their children? Listen to four ‘seasoned’ queer parents on their journeys as mothers, fathers and the other roles they play as part of family. Sindhu Rajasekaran, David Ledain, Vikram Kolmanskog and Patruni Sastry in conversation with Ankur Paliwal
3.10 – 4.00 pm	THE QUEER CARAVAN SHOWCASE The Queer Caravan is a collaborative residency program led by the Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan, the French Institute in India, and The Queer Muslim Project, with support from the German-French Cultural Fund. This unique initiative brings together queer storytellers and artists from France, Germany, and India to amplify underrepresented LGBTQIA+ voices and foster cross-cultural dialogue.
4.05 – 4.50 pm	PANEL Is God On Our Side? While faith is personal, it is social and political. It also relates to identity be it personal or public. Religions, the way they are interpreted and practiced have generally been seen as averse to queerness. With these realities how do queer folks relate to their faith and themselves? How do they traverse the complexities of belief, practices and ‘faithfulness’? Mario De Penha, Dr Aqsa Shaikh, Sukhdeep Singh and Sindhu Rajasekaran in conversation with Raqeeb Raza
4.55 – 5.25 pm	SPOTLIGHT TALK The Re-Invention Of The Church Rev. Devajyothi Kumar in conversation with Mario De Penha
5.30 – 6.15 pm	PANEL The Body As A Form Of Expression The body is a form of language and expression. It is about the I, the self as much as it is about its conditioning, a culture, an education, a marketplace and so on. The expression could be connected with what one wears, the attire one chooses. It could be related to dance in the classical form. It could be about the affirmation of one’s gender identity as one feels it. Therefore, it speaks in different ways. What is this language? How does it speak to itself and you? Dr Ranjana Dave, Katyayini Saksham, Saumyaa Vohra and Raqeeb, in conversation with Vivek Mansukhani
6.20 – 6.50 pm	THE RAINBOW LENS 2024 SHOWCASE The Co-founder of Pride Circle, Srini Ramaswami and the director of the film, Saanvi will be in conversation with Anwesh Sahoo
6.55 – 7.40 pm	SPOTLIGHT ON HISTORY Once Upon An Analog Time There was a period that can be called the ‘analog’ times, no digital world as such, no chat sites or apps, when the internet was a luxury. It was a time when Section 377 existed, spaces were hard to find, when cruising was one of the primary ways to meet someone. Listen to lived history being told by folks who belonged to that period, when queer wasn’t a declaration of pride, when LGBTQIA+ as an acronym didn’t exist Subhashish Mandal, Sandip Roy, Minakshi Sanyal in conversation with Manak Matiyani
7.45 – 8.00 pm	DRAG Patruni Sastry aka Sas
8.05 – 8.40 pm	THE RAINBOW AWARDS FOR LITERATURE & JOURNALISM, 2024 Your host is Anwesh Sahoo
8.45 – 10.00pm	MUSIC Bollyjazz A critically acclaimed band that has queered Bollywood music and queered jazz to create its own genre called Bollyjazz.

venue:	The Courtyard
	The host for the day is Divyansh Bhardwaj
12.45 – 1.15 pm	BOOK LAUNCH Unlove Story The author, Sudipto Pal will be in dialogue with Alexander Balakrishnan
1.20 – 1.45 pm	SPOTLIGHT ON HISTORY A Sappho Journey of Activism and Literature Minakshi Sanyal in conversation with Sandip Roy
1.50 – 2.20 pm	PANEL The Body And The ‘Embodiment’ Of The Trans-Identity Even after the NALSA verdict of 2014, what it is to be a transgender person continues to be shrouded in misinformation. There is a lot to know about gender dysphoria, mental health and whether being a transgender person demands that a person must go through a surgery to ‘claim’ or ‘affirm’ who they are. There is, of course, more to who a transgender person is. What is that ‘more’? Nikunj Jain, Krishanu and Dr Aqsa Shaikh will be in conversation with Raghavi
2.25 – 3.10 pm	FILM Samlinga The Director, Mohan Singh Aulakh will be in conversation with Sukhdeep Singh
4.10 – 4.30 pm	FILM Sifar
4.35 – 5.20 pm	PANEL The Incompleteness Of A Dual Life There are many journeys to be covered to feel free and to be yourself. The process of coming out isn’t a one-time affair. Fear isn’t momentary. Loneliness is a reality sometimes even when you are on your own. The process of fitting in can be restrictive, painful and traumatic. How does one find one’s way through the many layers of existence Dharmesh Chaubey, Edythe, Rohin Bhatt and Sarvagya Soni in conversation with Rohan Arora
5.25 – 5.35 pm	FILM Mehroon
5.40 – 6.15 pm	FILM IYKYK The director and actor, Bonita Rajpurohit will be in conversation with Alexander Balakrishnan
8.30 – 8.45pm	MUSIC Sarvagya Soni A transman who is known for their spoken word expression, will blend his thoughts with music and lyrics.

Day 2 Sunday, December 8

The Rainbow Lit Fest – Queer & Inclusive is for adults. We don’t have any child-friendly sessions. Please make note of this to avoid an awkward situation of being refused entry.

Gates open at 10:30 am. Registration from 10:30 am.

Venue:	The Playground
	The hosts for the day are Parvati M Krishnan & Shruti Gupta
11.50 – 12.35 pm	PANEL Love Is… We rarely celebrate relationships, love that has fought all kinds of odds to sustain themselves. It is about the self as well as the surroundings whether hostile or conducive. Listen to three couples that share their journeys including what they did to keep things going. Arshiya and Chand; Yogi and Kabeer, and Naina and Lameeya in conversation with Jaishree Kumar
12.40 – 1.10 pm	SPOTLIGHT ON HISTORY 2009: The First Win Against Section 377 Justice S Murlidhar and Anjali Gopalan will be in dialogue with Eric Chopra
2.00– 2.20 pm	BOOK LAUNCH Consciously Speaking (Marathi) Conceptualised and produced by AvianWE with the involvement of The QKnit, the book will be launched by Melissa Waggener Zorkin, Nitin Mantri Sharmishtha Ghosh and Amrita Tripathi.
2.30 – 3.05 pm	SPOTLIGHT TALK Untamed Sandhya Mridul in conversation with Vivek Mansukhani
3.10 – 3.55 pm	PANEL Disparities, the law and the Constitution: Who Is Equal? To be treated equally is important as it leads to a sense of dignity and a feeling there is space for yourself! Yet, the idea of equality in the eyes of the law and society is scripted mostly by men and society and leftovers from a bygone time. Then, therefore, who is equal if the share of voice is skewed to a handful? Does equality provide room for equity? Is it an answer to recognising diversity be it culture, language, education, food, success or love and desire? Saurabh Kirpal, Shreya Munoth, Dhiren Borisa and Dr Aqsa Shaikh in conversation with Raghavi
4.20 – 5.05 pm	PANEL Being A Queer Person In Politics: A Question of Representation, Expectations and Realities We have had a number of queer folks making it to politics, writing history. Yet, the past few years, with more conversations on queer life and rights, changing laws and the inclusion in election manifestos by a number of parties, has given many hope. The hope grows, however, when more folks emerge in significant positions within political parties and systems. What does it take to be part of a political party? Can queer representation lead to queering a political system? Is it too much for the community to expect more from queer folks in politics? Anish Gawande, Disha Pinky Shaikh and Mario da Penha in conversation with Rohin Bhatt
5.05 – 5.40 pm	SPOTLIGHT FILM Holy Curse The director, Snigdha Kapoor, will be in dialogue with Eric Chopra
5.45 – 6.05 pm	SPOTLIGHT TALK Of Art And Expression Keshav Suri will be in conversation with Sharif D Rangnekar
6.10 – 6.55 pm	PANEL A Re-imagined World: Can The Young Power Change? Living with social media, defining identity, political correctness while seeking a new world, are the expectations of younger generations of the world, unreal? Is there time for learning, nuanced negotiations and tact? If everyone has a lived reality, are only some to be counted and considered? How does one engage with diverse thoughts and ideas? Is there room for ‘agree to disagree’ or is disengagement or cancelling the only option? Does a new world mean re-equating, redefining ‘global’ ideas, thoughts and multiculturalism? If the human race is generally known to evolve and adapt with time, is the emphasis on ‘perfect’ people and definitions a disengagement with the realities of fluidity and evolution? Is there space for consensus building to create the imagined better tomorrow? Vaivab Das, Katyayini Saksham, Raghavi, Maisnam Arnapal and Sahitya in conversation with Yash Sharma
7.00 – 7.25 pm	STAND UP Navin Noronha
7.30 – 7.40pm	DANCE Footloose
7.45 – 8.15 pm	MUSIC Sagar & Srijan
8.20 – 8.35 pm	DRAG Krystal Koko

Venue:	The Courtyard
	The host for the day is Sonali Dutta
11.00 – 11.40 am	OPEN MIC After going through over 50 entries, we have selected six queer poets who will share their ideas of life and queerness through their own formats of poetry in Hindi and English. The performers are: Ujjwal Singh; Nashrah Tanvir; Rishabh Seth; Anaa Chaurasia; Vikram Kolmannskog and Anureet Watta.
11.45 am – 12.30	PANEL Bhasha, Paribhasha Aur Parinam Is the English language colonising the movement? Can’t queer identities have different languages of expression? If laws are written in English and if diversity and inclusion matters, how do we traverse the multiple terrains of over two dozen recognised languages? If English adopts words from French and Greek, and English and Urdu words form a part of spoken Hindi, is that an inclusive way forward? Poongodi Mathiarasu, Hameeda Syed, Rituparna Borah and Kinshuk Gupta in conversation with Amrita Tripathi
12.35 – 1.25 pm	PANEL Our Stories: The Why, How and the Marketplace For the longest time, queer representation in literature has been largely invisible. Even now, the space is limited and the market seems uncertain or hesitant. Are things changing, if so what and why? What makes the publishing world respond or ignore queer writers? Can we reclaim our place in the literary world? How do we go about bringing change? Karthika VK, Aditi Maheshwari, Ajay Jain, and Ranjana Sengupta in conversation with Dhrubo Jyoti.
1.50 – 2.35 pm	PANEL What Makes For A Safe Workplace: Stories And Pointers To Learn From Feeling safe allows a person to explore their skills, their acumen and even hone them. A job is not merely about economics. How do workplaces become that safe space? Is it about culture or is it about policies? Are policies about deterrents against queerphobia or about facilitating the lives of queer persons? Is there a full proof mechanism? Rashmi Datta Handa, Shally Bhasin and Taru Dahiya in conversation with Ram Sinha
4.20 – 5.05 pm	SPOTLIGHT FILM Sheer Qorma The director, Faraz Ansari, will be in conversation with Kabeer
5.10 – 5.45 pm	PANEL Homes ‘Can Be’ Where The Heart Is It isn’t often that we hear stories of parents accepting queer children, a child that doesn’t conform to social norms. The fear of ‘log kya kehenge’ is one thing that haunts them, putting society ahead of their children’s sexuality. The attempts to ‘convert’ the child to heterosexuality even after conversion therapy has been banned, is prevalent. Here are some inspiring stories of parents and queer children. Yuvraj Acharya and Satharupa (Mother) and Katyayini with Saksham (Mother) in conversation with Ankur Paliwal
6.10 – 6.55 pm	PANEL Desire: The Feeling, the Demonstration And the Shame Room for anything other than what is ‘prescribed’ outside the family and marriage structure, particularly in the area of sexual desire and pleasure, is usually considered shameful, lustful and loose. Kinks, sex toys and much more are often topics to frown upon and termed immoral or even ‘sick’. The idea that someone can be fluid is not acceptable. Making a choice to be single, not wishing to procreate and ‘have a family’ (read: since blood is thicker than water), is ‘problematic’ and ‘shameful’. The right over one’s body is also pretty much unacceptable. Why do desires lead to shame? What is the backstory of ‘shame’? How do we redefine shame or do we adopt it shamelessly? If so, how do we do so given that queerness itself is outside the prescribed path of society! Saikat Majumdar, Urvashi Butalia, Jaya Sharma and Simran Shaikh in conversation with Eric Chopra

Disclaimer: Schedule is subject to the change.

The views and opinions expressed by the speakers and performers, or any person associated with the Rainbow Literature Festival – Queer & Inclusive (RLF) in individual capacity or during the festival are theirs. They do not reflect the views or positions of the RLF, the Dwijen Dinanath Arts Foundation (DDAF) or any entity associated with them. Neither the RLF nor the DDAF will be responsible or liable for any views that are false, controversial, defamatory or erroneous. The liability for all views expressed shall vest with the expressor of the said views.