Prce Manvendra, The World's First Openly Gay Prce, Fights For LGBT Rights In India | HuffPost OWN

Contents:

• INDIA'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE ENDURED YEARS OF TORTURO NVERSN THERAPY. NOW, HE'S FIGHTG TO MAKE THE PRACTICE ILLEGAL.
• PRI AND PREJUDICE: INDIAN ROYAL MANVENDRA SGH GOHIL ON BEG THE WORLD’S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE
• IN INDIA, A GAY PRCE’S COMG OUT EARNS ACLAS, AND ENEMI
• INDIA’S FIRST GAY PRCE: PRCE MANVENDRA SGH GOHIL
• INDIA’S FIRST GAY PRCE TALKS ABOUT HIS INIAL STGGL OF BEG A HOMOSEXUAL IN INDIA
• A GAY INDIAN PRCE TALKS ABOUT HIS LIFE AND IT'S JT AS FULL OF PRIVILEG AS IT IS OF CHALLENG
• WORLD'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE OPENS HIS PALACE DOORS TO INDIAN LGBT COMMUNY
• FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE SPEAKS OUT ON MISSN TO END CONVERSN THERAPY: 'I HAVE TO KEEP FIGHTG'
• PRCE MANVENDRA, THE WORLD'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE, FIGHTS FOR LGBT RIGHTS IN INDIA
• YOUNG, ROYAL & GAY: THE LIFE OF AN INDIAN PRCE

INDIA'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE ENDURED YEARS OF TORTURO NVERSN THERAPY. NOW, HE'S FIGHTG TO MAKE THE PRACTICE ILLEGAL.

In 2006, Prce Manvendra Sgh Gohil me out to a lol newspaper, beg India's first openly gay prce. Prce Manvendra Sgh Gohil, the 39th direct scendant of India's Gohil Raut dynasty, knew he was gay at age 12.

But he uld only live his tth three s publicly me out an terview to a lol newspaper 2006, beg the first openly gay royal the untry. He was 41 at the 2018, homosexualy was illegal India, punishable unr Sectn 377, a lonial-era dranian law that mand up to life imprisonment for anyone mtg sexual acts "agast the orr of nature. He turned the palace grounds he was once thrown out of to a shelter for the LGBTQ+ had expected the homophobic uproar.

The society he grew up around was strongly nserative, and the untry he grew up didn't legally regnize gay rights.

PRI AND PREJUDICE: INDIAN ROYAL MANVENDRA SGH GOHIL ON BEG THE WORLD’S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE

Many around him believed that homosexualy was a mental disorr. Much of his advocy for LGBTQ+ rights ntu to primarily revolve around cimatg the stigma around homosexualy. In 2018, the year that the Supreme Court crimalized homosexualy a landmark lg, Gohil opened up a 15-acre palace grounds to build a shelter for vulnerable members of the muny.

IN INDIA, A GAY PRCE’S COMG OUT EARNS ACLAS, AND ENEMI

"They thought was impossible that I uld be gay bee my cultural upbrgg had been so rich.

INDIA’S FIRST GAY PRCE: PRCE MANVENDRA SGH GOHIL

Speakg exclively to Tatler om Rajvant Palace, his fay’s grand rince Gujarat, wtern India, the 55-year-old prce rells how havg a breakdown the early 2000s set him on a path that led to his beg crowned one of the untry’s leadg LGBTQ+ rights activists and hailed by many as the only openly gay prce the 2002, Prce Manvendra was certa he was gay, havg been attracted to men for years. ‘My mother and father mand I have surgery or shock therapy to be cured, ’ he prce was hled off to a seri of doctors and spirual guis, all of whom told his parents no uncerta terms that their son’s homosexualy was neher a disorr nor a mental illns that uld be expunged. ’Unterred, however, the Maharana and Maharani of Raipla tried to keep their son’s homosexualy unr wraps – was then illegal India – but 2006, the prce me out to a newspaper.

INDIA’S FIRST GAY PRCE TALKS ABOUT HIS INIAL STGGL OF BEG A HOMOSEXUAL IN INDIA

So they sent him off to the doctor, as they would years later when he told them he was gay. When Prce Manvendra was married, homosexualy was a crimal offence.

‘In India, homo-social behavur is very accepted, ’ he says. ‘On the one hand, they tell you beg gay is wrong.

Not bee I was gay – they said was bee I spoke the tth. Many don’t agree wh the Supreme Court’s cisn, ’ he says, referrg to the 2018 legalisatn of homosexualy. Homophobia and hypocrisy mt be cimated.

A GAY INDIAN PRCE TALKS ABOUT HIS LIFE AND IT'S JT AS FULL OF PRIVILEG AS IT IS OF CHALLENG

Sgh is not gay, but he has received threats merely for workg on LGBTQ+ Indian issu. Unterred, Sgh marked the two-year anniversary of India’s legalisatn of homosexualy wh an onle exhibn September om his London gallery.

’Content as Prce Manvendra seems, many fear that warmg attus towards gay people India uld soon turn osty aga, particularly unr the natnalist le of the untry’s prime mister Narendra Modi. Do the prce worry about homosexualy beg ma illegal once more?

1, 2020NEW DELHI — Born to a royal fay that once led the kgdom of Raipla India, he was raised the fay’s palac and mansns and was beg groomed to take over a dynasty that go back 600 then he gave an terview that prompted his mother to disown him and set off protts his hometown, where he was burned g out as gay that 2006 terview, Prce Manvendra Sgh Gohil has faced a torrent of bullyg and threats, and was dishered by his fay for a he has also earned global aclas for his L.

WORLD'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE OPENS HIS PALACE DOORS TO INDIAN LGBT COMMUNY

Advocy, beg one of the few gay-rights activists the world wh such royal part of his efforts, Prce Manvendra, 55, has appeared on “The Oprah Wey Show” three tim, swapped life stori wh Kris Jenner on “Keepg Up Wh the Kardashians” and is workg to tablish a shelter for L. Among gay Manvendra and his hband, Andre Richardson, have spent the last few months lockdown gettg the shelter ready. ShutterstockWhen the prce shared that he was gay that ont-page newspaper terview 14 years ago, created a storm of mostly negative publicy.

Beg gay was a crimal offense India unr the archaic Brish law effect at the time. ”Beg gay was not a possibily that ever crossed his md, he said, bee he knew nothg about .

FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE SPEAKS OUT ON MISSN TO END CONVERSN THERAPY: 'I HAVE TO KEEP FIGHTG'

I saw an article about Ashok Row Kavi and his gay magaze Bombay Dost. I cid to get touch wh him and ask him if I uld possibly be gay, ” he Kavi is a father of India’s gay-rights movement. In 1977, he me out publicly and went on to found Bombay Dost, India’s first gay magaze, 1990.

He found the Humsafar Tst, the first group to provi health servic and advocy for gay men, Kavi troduced Prce Manvendra to other people the muny and traed him as a unselor. He said the prce quietly fund the first telephone help le for gay people 2000, wh Mr.

PRCE MANVENDRA, THE WORLD'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PRCE, FIGHTS FOR LGBT RIGHTS IN INDIA

Kavi’s enuragement, the prce started the Lakshya Tst Gujarat to help the gay muny work was fulfillg, but as a closeted gay man, the prce said, beme creasgly difficult to do the advocy work need for Lakshya. ’”But every doctor his parents nsulted told them the same thg — homosexualy was not a disease or a mental disorr. ” Loke for The New York TimOver the past 14 years, the once-shy royal has grown acctomed to the spotlight and bee a vol activist for the gay rights movement.

” Loke for The New York TimA versn of this article appears prt on, Sectn A, Page 9 of the New York edn wh the headle: In India, a Prce Be a Gay-Rights Champn.

YOUNG, ROYAL & GAY: THE LIFE OF AN INDIAN PRCE

5 thgs to know about Prce Manvendra, India’s first openly gay royal. His mother publicly disowned him by placg an advert the lol paper, and took almost a for them to rencile, a natn where LGBTQ+ activists only recently prevailed havg gay sex crimalised Published: 4:00pm, 10 Mar, 2020 Updated: 4:00pm, 10 Mar, 2020 Manvendra Sgh Gohil (left) and De DeAndre Richardson, photographed durg the Hong Kong Pri Para 2018, at Victoria Park, Cseway Bay.

(Pasl Le Segreta / AIDES & Lk / Getty Imag)Prce Manvendra Sgh Gohil, the first openly gay prce India, took to a makhift stage a swanky Indian rtrant New York last week.