“I could not pretend anymore. I have been on trips with my partner Mansi (names changed on request) to quite a few places, even to Vaishno Devi, but we have had to pretend to be friends all the time. I am very expressive and I want to cozy up to my partner just like any normal couple would want to, when I am in a romantic mood. And I have never been able to do so. This time around we went to Phuket for a holiday and it was our first truly romantic holiday,” says Rani (name changed on request).
Just like Mansi and Rani there are many more lesbian/gay couples who want to go on a holiday to spend quality time with each other and cashing in on the ‘pink tourism’ are tour designers who are designing special holiday packages for homosexuals.
IndjaPink calls itself a ‘gay travel company’ and has completed one year of successful running this year. Sanjay Malhotra says, “I wanted to provide exceptional experiences and tours to gay men in a hassle-free, fearless and discrimination- free atmosphere, where they can be who they actually are.” Sanjay clearly mentions on their website that their tours are more expensive as compared to others. Why? “Our tours are very creative, extremely premium offerings for men. We try to include cooking classes, personal yoga and spiritual sessions with masters, top end spa experiences, intimate dinners at intimate locations, private 24 hr gay/gay-friendly butlers. Passion never comes cheap,” replies Sanjay.
Says Reena Sachdev, a tour designer, “I had gay couples coming to me earlier too but they hardly ever revealed their sexuality. They would usually pretend to be friends. Now they are more forthcoming. Just like any other couple, they want to discuss every aspect of their holiday and that’s a nice thing.” Like Mansi and Rani consider themselves married and their Phuket trip in August was their second honeymoon. “Mansi and I got married in a small temple in Mumbai in 2004 and since then we are living together. Our wedding though has no legal recognition but for us we are each other’s spouses.”
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