Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Photograph © Indu Antony
Queer or straight, women perform their femaleness both within and against societal gender rules that dictate what women should be. In a patriarchal society, we work harder to establish our womanhood against norms that trap us in limited boxes of "feminine" self-expression.
Drag kings - women dressed in masculine drag to personify and perform male gender. This is the story of how thirteen queer women aimed to capture the raw masculine energy and style inherent in them, and sneaked out of their female bodies. They dreamed drag to bend gender. Being drag kings was, of course, a pleasurable pursuit; but to them it was more about erasing restrictive gender boxes.
The idea of drag, on paper, can seem like a fancy-dress parade. But, in reality, being a drag king involves both a physical and psychological shift. Men and women walk, sit, stand, and act differently. Mannerisms are different. From breast binding to subtle representations of the male genitalia, these women went to lengths to perform the character each chose.
That these gender-bending rebels are a bunch of female-identified women playing at being men is a mere backdrop to the movement that they have launched - a revolution of sorts.
-----
At the time of our 1:1 Interview with Indu, she was asked these questions about ManiFest.
PSA: What is the significance of the childhood photo of you dressed as a pilot?
IA: The fact that I was initially not allowed to wear clothes that were restricted to a particular gender. This made a big impression on me.
PSA: What prompted you to work on this series of drag kings?
IA: I was endeavoring to create more awareness about the LGBTQI community in India.
PSA: Can you please explain the thought and the process of creating this work?
IA: I had done a photo shoot of drag queens just a week before and realized that I should also do this for the women in the community, hence we worked towards it.
PSA: Manifests is a politically charged work. What did you hope to achieve with this project?
IA: My intent was to create more awareness about our existence.
20 November
