“Help me. I’m listening. I’m learning.”
Monica Dogra
Little over a fortnight ago, musician and actress Monica Dogra incurred the wrath of the Indian internet when she made a call to crowdsource ₹50,00,000 (nearly $80,000) for what she described as a "high art project" – a music video for her single "Shiver," intended to spread awareness about LGBT issues in India. A number of her detractors were from within the same communities she set out to represent, and the general sentiment was that to spend such a large sum of money on a music video – as opposed to other, potentially more impactful initiatives – was wasteful. Dogra came under fire on various social media platforms and in several essays and think pieces.
Two weeks later, here's her story and what she's learned from the experience.
Monica Dogra
BuzzFeed: What initially drove you to make something for India's LGBT communities?
Dogra: I continue to add my voice to the LGBTQ cause because I have played with gender and sexuality through my work as a performance artist for as long as I can remember. I speak on sexual fluidity and gender fluidity through the lyrics of my songs and I've never related to the confines of sexual orientation labels.
For better or worse, I have been pigeonholed as "androgynous" by more than one fashion magazine in India. I realise that I am not the most extreme physical representation of gender fluidity that exists in India, but I am a small step in the expansion of perceptions. I know this because I have been on ground for the last 9 years touring the country and speaking to progressive young people. I know that music and culture have been catalysts for conversation and debate.
