Ashok Row Kavi is a leading figure of the Indian gay movement. In 1984 Ashok was the first Indian to come out in public as gay. All his life, he has fought for the improvement of gay rights. He could have lived an easier life in another country, says Ashok. But he stayed in India. He is the founder of the first gay scene magazine “Bombay Dost” and he participated in the first Pride March in 1999. Ashok is still an important activist. He also heads the parade in Mumbai on the candle walk, a memorial march for those who died of AIDS. He is followed by many people, women, men, transsexuals – all dressed in white attached with a red ribbon. But Ashok slowly wants to make room for a younger generation, for a new kind of protest.
Ashok is a leading figure of the Indian gay movement. In 1984 Ashok was the first Indian to come out in public as gay. All his life, he has fought for the improvement of gay rights. He could have lived an easier life in another country, says Ashok. But he stayed in India. He is the founder of the first gay scene magazine “Bombay Dost” and he participated in the first Pride March in 1999. Ashok is still an important activist. He also heads the parade in Mumbai on the candle walk, a memorial march for those who died of AIDS. He is followed by many people, women, men, transsexuals – all dressed in white attached with a red ribbon. But Ashok slowly wants to make room for a younger generation, for a new kind of protest.