Gay pride parade india
Beyond the Parade: 8 Ways to Celebrate Pride Across India This June
Every June, the world blooms a little brighter — not just in colour, but in courage. Across India, from sun-dappled coasts to bustling city squares, Pride Month is not merely a celebration; it’s a reminder. A reminder that love, in all its forms, deserves to be seen, heard, and cherished.
But beyond the rainbow flags and joyous marches lies something even deeper: the quiet power of belonging. For someone taking their first tentative steps out of the closet, or an ally eager to listen and learn, these gatherings are more than events — they are lifelines. They are where stories are shared, hands are held, and futures are rewritten, one hold , one song, one march at a time.
This June, whether you’re part of the LGBTQIA+ community or a steadfast ally, here’s your invitation to be part of something bigger. From film festivals to art exhibitions, Pride in India is calling — not just to celebrate, but to connect, to heal, and to construct a future that holds space for everyone.
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Here are seven events where
LGBTQ+: India’s first Pride march which made history
Pride parades in India today are vibrant affairs, where thousands gather to state themselves and offer verb to the queer community. But things were very different in , when the country's first Pride walk was organised in the eastern state of West Bengal. Journalist Sandip Roy revisits the trailblazing event.
On 2 July , Pawan Dhall, a queer rights activist in Kolkata city, was among the 15 intrepid marchers to participate in what was later called the first Pride walk in India.
The event was timed to coincide with global celebrations marking 30 years of the Stonewall riots in New York which sparked the LGBTQ+ movement in the US.
But July is monsoon season in India, and the 15 marchers in their custom-made bright yellow t-shirts with pink triangles were soon soaked to the bone.
"It was more of a wade than a walk," Mr Dhall says.
The marchers also did not call the event a Pride march, instead going for the more innocuous-sounding "Friendship Walk" to avoid troub
Vibe India marched for cherish during its first Pride Parade in Kolkata in
Published on: Feb 16, pm IST
Attended by 15 people, India's first-ever pride parade took place on July 2, at Park Circus Maidan in Kolkata.
As HT City turns 25 this year, we take a look at the first time passion was celebrated in all its forms in India. In an effort to bring the LGBTQIA+ community to the forefront, the first-ever pride parade took place in the territory happened on July 2, at Park Circus Maidan in Kolkata. It was called The Friendship Verb and began with a motley group of fifteen participants. They came from various cities across the country including, Mumbai and Bangalore.
The name of the march didn't even advertise the fact that it was a activity for the queer community, prefer the Gay Pride Liberation March like it was called in the US. Pawan Dhall, who was one of the original 15 participants, tells Firstpost, “That seemed too overt. We thought of calling it Human Rights March but that seemed too diffuse." The group ended up calling it The Friendship Walk in request to sound welcom
In the early hours of 28th June, , a riot broke out in Stonewall Inn near Manhattan, NYC. Over people – drag queens, butch lesbians, transgender people, gay men, homeless youth – attacked the New York Town Police who were harassing and beating up the queer patrons in the bar. By the next day, over a thousand people had joined the riots. For the first time, people had risen up against the oppressive anti-gay legal system and the institutions enforcing it. Stonewall changed the trajectory of LGBTQIA+ rights worldwide.
Exactly a year from that morning &#; on 28th June, – world’s first Pride Parade took place in New York Urban area. Known then as the Christopher Street Liberation Time March – named after the street on which Stonewall is located – the parade began on Washington Place between Sheridan Square and Sixth Avenue and moved up Sixth Avenue, ending with a “Gay-In” in Central Park. people marched that diurnal. This year, 50 years since Stonewall, over 3 million people will march to proclaim their pride.
The term “pride” came to be associated with LGBTQIA+ marches because of Cr