Creative and performing art are apt media to reflect our society — the issues that plague us and ones that can contribute and initiate a conversation. With this intent, a city-based college student Ayesha, her sister and friends have founded ‘The Firefly Community’ to use art as a tool to help normalise, understand and debate about taboos in society. The first leg of their event series ‘Out and About’ an open-mic evening, commemorating the pride month will have people from the LGBTQ community discuss issues of their societal acceptance through performance art-poetry, music and dance this weekend.
Says Ayesha, “Our first event is to help the LGBTQ community. It’s a stage space for people who are still in the closet, who don’t feel comfortable about talking this issue in other places. This is also to initiate a conversation. We have to normalise the entire stigma/taboos surrounding their issues, it’s important to let people know this is not wrong.” The more one talks about it, the more we can succeed in our intentions, she feels.
The four member-team came together with a common desire to do something for society and ensure a hopeful future. “Things fell in place as my sister and pals came together,” Ayesha adds. This is a step to keep people informed about where we are as a society and for marginalised communities to find representation. “Hyderabad doesn’t have events about them often. Even if they exist, the presence of the community has been marginal. As part of our research, we realised there were only found a handful of events surrounding the LGBTQ community, mostly hush-hush, where not many people showed up.”
One needs to acknowledge the presence and problems of the LGBTQ community. Ayesha often came across concentration camps, medicines that promise to make an individual straight, these are something that bothered her. “It is something that has existed since ages and is not influenced by western culture. Sadly, many even consider it a mental disorder.”
This is only the beginning of a bigger series. Firefly Community plans to touch upon other delicate/oft-ignored issues through art. “Art is something that fascinates people and allows them to express. Why can’t we take anything as energising as art and talk about these issues?” In another two months, the group plans to host events to focus on areas like child abuse, child labour, sexual abuse. Time to set this right! (Out and About by The Firefly Community is on at Lamakaan, Banjara Hills on June 17, 4 pm, Entry free)