Prince Manvendrasinh Gohil is back from Brazil after being a special guest and the first Asian to participate in Gay Parade at Sao Paulo.
Prince Manvendrasinh Gohil is back from Brazil after being a special guest and the first Asian to participate in Gay Parade at Sao Paulo.
He was made a guest of honour in a parade in which about 3.5 million people participated.
Sharing his experience, Prince Manvendrasinh said, “It was unbelievable to see such a huge gathering. And the parade was not the only thing. I inaugurated an office, an art exhibition and even released a book on homosexuality authored by the mother of a gay son. I was even made to dance with Samba dancers. The experience was terrific.”
This parade was first launched in 1999, when only 3,000 people participated in it. But now, it has become one of the biggest attractions for gays, lesbians and bisexuals all over the world. A separate lesbian parade was organised a day before the gay carnival was launched. Seeing the popularity of the parade, men who had experienced sex with men have demanded a similar parade. On June 21, Butch man parade will be held for such men.
Manvendrasinh communicated with the media there. They were curious to know how homosexuality is not accepted in a country that has old books like Kamsutra. A Brazilian dancer trained under Odissi exponent Kelu Charan Mahapatra performed at the cultural evening and in the parade Gay Samba School dancers performed on the roads.
The gay prince said, “The road traffic was blocked since morning and the parade went on from ten in the morning till five in the evening. Every person present in the crowd was cheering up for India the moment they saw me. It was a very special moment for me. People there are curious to know more about India. I was astonished to know that Sao Paulo is a city where a high number of helicopters are used for transportation in the city, as the fear of getting robbed is very high.
“There is an association named CasaRao - of promoters of commercial gay ventures. These promoters are into business such as gay bars, gay clubs, gay motels etc. These companies employ gay men and support them to stabilise in life. I even visited a hospice for old HIV+ve people. Government is very supportive towards gay issues there and, interestingly, this parade is one big reason for good tourism.” The gay prince said he aimed to work in the direction of making homosexuality more acceptable.
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