ParallelLines: for freedom to talk, discuss rights

For Dibyendu Pal, Tirthankar Guha Thakurta and Souvik Som being comfortable with their sexual orientation in a cosmopolitan city like Kolkata is not that much of an issue. “But there are so many other gay men across the country who have to grapple with issues that are beyond their control. In smaller towns and villages people suffer discrimination in the most obvious manner and they hardly have a support system,” says Guha Thakurta who is associated with a reputed medical college in Kolkata.

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) support groups are more city-centric in West Bengal which means people belonging to LGBT community in smaller towns don’t have much of a support system.

“Even if there are support cells in villages, some people tend to be too closeted to reach out,” says Thakurta. To address this problem Guha Thakurta and some of his friends, namely Souvik Som, Dibyendu Pal, Rudra Krishna Mondol, Souvik Biswas, Avishek Guha Thakurta, Sujoy Das, Roddur de and Subhanan Pandit have launched LGBT support website called paralellines.in “Through this website we will try to offer a host of services to the people of LGBT community. Since all of us are involved in this endeavor as a voluntary service it will be all about passion,” says Thakurta.

For more information, see Indian Express article here or click on the image above.