Three young people in Lahore try to escape the reality of their everyday lives. They succeed in ways they least expected. Zinda Bhaag, directed by Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi, and produced by Mazhar Zaidi has been selected as the Pakistani entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards—for the first in over 50 years. Check out the trailer here. The local lead actors describe their own ability

Posted: October 18th, 2013

We’re excited to offer discounted tickets for two extraordinary productions grounded in South Asian culture at Lincoln Center’s White Light Festival: The Manganiyar Seduction (October 31, November 1 and 2 at 7:30pm), performed by approximately 40 singers and instrumentalists from Rajasthan state in Northwest India directed by Roysten Abel, which premiered at the White Light Festival in 2010; and the U.S. premiere of DESH (November 6 and 7 at 7:30pm), a solo dance performance rooted in traditional kathak

Posted: October 18th, 2013

Q Radio is India’s first radio station tailored to LGBT audiences and has been broadcasting around the clock from Bangalore since September. The station plays tunes by LGBT-friendly and queer artists in between talk shows discussing issues faced by the community ranging from coming out to LGBT global human rights. Program host Vaishalli Chandra, a former journalist and Q Radio’s channel manager notes: “It’s nice to have people come out and share their

Posted: October 5th, 2013

IN Group invites you to Light the Night, a one of its kind Diwali event, with Sholay’s resident DJ – Ashu Rai. Light the Night includes: an exclusive evening cruise with views of the New York City Skyline, with a premium open bar, cuisine by Bukhara Grill, NYC  and the beats of Ashu Rai, dholi Mohit and more. The event is 21 + and tickets are on sale here. Please note:

Posted: October 4th, 2013

Since the historic strike down of Penal Code 377 in 2009, we’ve seen Pride marches in India expand beyond Delhi (pictured above) and Mumbai to cities like Bangalore, Kolkata and Chennai. Thanks to the efforts of  Gujarat LGBT Pride Festival (GLGBTPF) and Foram Foundation, rainbow flags will be flying on Sunday, October 6th in Surat, Gujarat. Organizers hope the first LGBT march in this conservative state will increase awareness, particularly among

Posted: October 3rd, 2013

We’re still recovering from a fun-filled weekend of mojitos, Doonya dancing, pool parties, sunset swims and drag brunches with the Mumbai 2 Miami crew this past weekend.  On Saturday, Sholay’s Atif and Ashu Rai deejayed a fun-filled afternoon pool party at Hotel Nash in South Beach.  Here are pictures of the beautiful ladies and boys that were in attendance.  We are looking forward to next year’s festivities!

Posted: September 26th, 2013

Don’t Hate Us, Know Us! ہم سے نفرت نہ کیجئے، ہمیں جانئے You’d think that the Pakistani government, beleaguered by corruption, power shortages, and sectarian violence would have better things to do than pick on a local LGBTQ group. A website that provides advocacy, education and support is a danger to the public according to the government.  Read more about the shutdown of Queer Pakistan. The website is accessible outside Pakistan (for now) and has

Posted: September 26th, 2013

While beauty contests may be so 20th century, desi New Yorkers shared a moment of brown pride when Nina Davuluri from New York was crowned the first Indian-American Miss America. She knocked out the judges and audience with a classical/Bollywood dance number and, upon winning, the aspiring physician noted “I’m so happy this organization has celebrated diversity, and, on this stage tonight, there was so much diversity…” Predictably but sadly, a barrage

Posted: September 16th, 2013