Kolkatan wins big at Mr Gay World in SA, opens new doors for India's same-sex community

The phone does not stop ringing as Kolkatan Samarpan Maiti's gets family, friends, colleagues and neighbours call to congratulate him ever since he returned late on Monday after being crowned 2nd runner up at the Mr Gay World (MGW) 2018 pageant at Knysna, South Africa.

"Though I was conferred the award at a glistening public event, it hasn't still sunk in," says this 29-year-old senior researcher at the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, who is also an IIT alumnus. "It feels unreal to see my name alongside Australian reality TV chef Jordan Bruno (crowned Mr Gay World 2018) and New Zealander Ricky Devine-White."

When he began preparations to participate he had not only the rigour of becoming fit and brushing up his English to contend with but also the additional fear of how his immediate neighbours and extended family would react. "I have been raised in a small village, Siddha in East Midnapore where everybody is quite conservative. For me all this seems like a dream."

Maiti, who lost his father when he had barely finished school says his mother and sister have been very supportive ever since he came out to them few years ago. "In fact my mother has been calling everyone in her own extended family to tell them of my win."

Along with working with underprivileged LGBTQIA community members Maiti has used his personal example to send a message out on living with dignity. "When my sister Samarpita tied the knot two months ago, I insisted we tell the bridegroom and his family about me. In fact we got an LGBTQIA-inclusion message printed on the wedding card too."

Since Rahul Patil's participation in 2009, India has continuously made its presence felt at MGW. While Bandra boy model, actor and tarot card reader Nolan Lewis was the first to make it to the top 10 in 2013, fellow Mumbaikar singer, performer Sushant Divgikar won four sub-awards a year later. In 2015 following homophobic death threats to Kochi resident Thahir Mohammed Sayyed he not only withdrew from MGW but his family had to flee India. In the next two years Anwesh Sahoo and Darshan Mandhana represented India and also made it to top 10.

Divgikar, who is now South West Asia director for MGW, underlines why Maiti's win is special on many levels. "He had to struggle with the language and also the cyber bullying which was really mean and wicked. People tried to shame him for his accent and his vocabulary. Not that it stopped others from coming forward to help. Hotelier-philanthropist Keshav Suri and LGBTQIA rights organisation Salvation Star helped fund Maiti's SA ticket," he points out and adds, "Maiti's win should not only silence the haters but also hopefully open doors to others from India beyond the metros and their exclusive all-English, upper class LGBTQIA cliques and bolster India's battle against sexual orientation based exclusion."