Three gay Happy Hookers wait for happier times

The lights dim and a Rajesh Roshan song, ‘Telephone’ gradually picks up volume as a woman sings lustily, “Hello darling, I am waiting for you.” This is a scene at the premiere screening of Happy Hookers, a documentary on male sex workers by freelance ad filmmaker, Ashish Sawhny, at National College, Bandra, on Monday.

This 53-minute documentary traces the lives of three male sex workers. Shakeel, an outspoken bisexual, says homosexuality has been a royal indulgence in the past. The effeminate Vicky enjoys dressing up as a woman for Bin Baykancha Tamasha, a Marathi folk theatre form performed without women. Imran leads two lives—as a husband and tailor during the day, and cruising Bandra station for clients by night.

Sawhny admitted that the main motivation behind the three revealing their lives was the money he paid them to appear before the camera. “I signed contracts with all of them—I didn’t want to be accused of exploitation,” he said.

Despite the apparently joyous title of the film, all the three hookers are still waiting for a better future. Vicky admits that until he finds a better job, he will stick to the sex trade. Shakeel has a French lover who has invited him over, saying he will find him a job in France. “He cares for me and I have to reciprocate. It will be good to go out into the world,” says Shakeel. “And he is also French!” he exults.

Sawhny admits that his film restricts itself to the lower economic sections. “This film makes it seem like male prostitution only happens among the poor, which is untrue. I desperately wanted to get a model type, who takes his clients to five-star hotels. But they didn’t come on camera as they had too much to lose.”

The film has its naughty moments. Shakeel gets touchy in the crowded men’s compartment of a local train. Vicky shares sex jokes with his eunuch friends. Sawhny, however, admits that his film does not reveal any of the violence faced by prostitutes. “The three men I spoke to never experienced any violence,” he insists.

He says the film brings to fore the lack of awareness about HIV. “I used quick inter-cuts in the shots where all three men reveal their casual attitude towards condoms and HIV. It is frightening,” he says. Sawhny will send his film to NGOs and film festivals. “I don’t want to restrict this film to the gay community at all. It deals with HIV, which is a universal issue,” he says.