Mumbai: Supreme Court’s 2018 decision to decriminalise homosexuality was a landmark moment. The recognition of the transgender community’s rights under a new law furthered the cause for equality. Despite this, the journey towards equity for LGBTQIA+ communities has been long and challenging in India, fraught with setbacks, systemic exclusion and marginalisation.
Despite some progress on the legal front, legislative action, political representation and access to adequate resources haven’t made the desired progress.
On February 4, Godrej Industries Group, Radhika Piramal and Keshav Suri Foundation, in collaboration with Dasra, a philanthropic and strategic impact organisation, announced a Pride Fund. The fund, with an initial corpus of Rs 2 crore, was announced following a report that studies the condition of the LGBTQIA+ community and how very little philanthropic work has been done for the community.
In the first phase, 50 NGOs working in queer spaces across India were identified. After a structured evaluation, 22 of them were shortlisted, with eight selected for multi-year funding. These organisations were chosen for their “long-term vision, community impact, and ability to create lasting change”. The funding it guaranteed for three years.
Less than 1% of global funding for LGBTQIA+ issues
The report suggests that India receives less than 1% of global funding for LGBTQIA+ issues, and the situation is further compounded by the fact that only two of India’s top 50 philanthropic givers explicitly prioritise LGBTQIA+ issues. The systemic exclusion and invisibility of these communities is a harsh reality, often overlooked in mainstream development discussions, it states.
The lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ individuals are anything but monolithic. And these experiences, the report says, are shaped by “intersecting factors such as class, gender, ethnicity, caste, tribe affiliation, religion, and other identities”. The remnants of “colonial conservatism” and ingrained “socio-cultural prejudices” continue to force queer communities to the margins of society.
The study notes that in the face of adversity, civil society organisations (CSOs) have been at the forefront of supporting LGBTQIA+ communities, amplifying grassroots perspectives, and providing vital services. These organisations, it says, have been instrumental in pushing for legal and formal equality and responding to the unique challenges faced by intersectionally marginalised LGBTQIA+ groups.
The 72-page study looks at the role played by the CSOs in addressing gaps in institutional services, including healthcare, education, livelihoods and access to justice. Over 57% of nonprofits working with LGBTQIA+ communities, the study finds, are service providers and field-builders. Another 53% focus on grassroots settings.
The rise of queer leadership
There is also an important shift in the landscape, the rise of queer leadership, the study has found. Over 50% of nonprofits working with LGBTQIA+ communities in India are queer-led. The change, the report shows, is being driven by those who understand the lived experiences of these communities firsthand. The study conducted with the hope to boost investment for the cause calls the queer-led leadership a “positive development” and says investing in these organisations is essential to ensure long-term socioeconomic dividends for queer communities.
The funding landscape remains a significant challenge, the findings state. Despite the growth of the movement, access to resources remains limited. Only 43% of nonprofits working with queer communities are eligible for international funding, and 59% of funding for LGBTQIA+ causes comes from international sources. This heavy reliance on external funding poses risks to the sustainability and autonomy of queer organisations in India. Moreover, a lack of domestic funding continues to hinder progress.
“For years, Indian companies have spent crores on weddings and lavish celebrations. It’s time they invest in ensuring queer people can access the same basic rights and dignities,” Piramal, executive director of VIP Industries Ltd, said at the fund launch in Mumbai. She further added that “LGBTQIA organisations are running on fumes. The Pride Fund aims to raise resources and awareness for queer-led NGOs that work tirelessly on the ground for the community.”
International funding, while crucial, cannot replace the need for homegrown support, the report has suggested. India, with its 18% share of the global population, receives only a minor share of global LGBTQIA+ funding. This highlights a significant gap between the resources available and the on-the-ground needs of queer communities.
The study stresses on the point that while judicial action – like the NALSA judgment of 2014 and the decriminalisation of homosexuality – has been transformative, the legislative landscape remains largely shaped by the judiciary, and action by the executive is still in its infancy.
The lack of a clear and comprehensive legislative framework leaves queer communities vulnerable to systemic harm and discrimination. The absence of openly queer political leaders in India’s political sphere further exacerbates this issue, the study says. It also makes a case for the need for an official data on the queer population, as without these numbers it is difficult to push for essential legislative changes.
This report, the collaborators say, is both a tribute to the resilience of LGBTQIA+ communities in India and a call for urgent action. CSOs, queer leaders and allies must come together to bridge the gap in resources and representation, it states.