‘THE BOYFRIEND’: A NARRATIVE OF INCLUSION AND SEARCH FOR IDENTITY

Abstract

The present paper is a study of Raj Rao’s major work and the first novel of Indian history to be dealing with the homosexual subject matter. The chapter is a detail analysis of all the aspects of The Boyfriend through the lens of the theory of Gay writings. Here in the present chapter attempt is made to study the book from the theoretical perspective of Foucault, Kofesky, Diana Fuss, and McIntoshe. R. Raj Rao one of the leading gay right activist of India. A writer of Poems, Short stories, fictions as well as Plays, Serving at the University of Pune. He has presented the number of papers at national as the well international level at various places. When The Boyfriend Came out front has created quite a stir and became topic of talk for various magazines as a guide to the then underground gay subculture Bombay. It is being used as a model for LGBTQ studies in Indian Research forum. They were used to projects certain dominance over women that is why they were used to call or famously known as a patriarchal. They were having an image of torchbearers of patriarchal society. Alternate masculinity’s present in India as a closed entity. The fear of discrimination and rejection has never approved this community for public appearance. They have two-dimensional identity crisis one with themselves and others with society. Having realising different or homosexual tendency of their nature they have to first accept themselves as their ancestors have presented cis gender.

Keywords

LGBTQ, masculinity, society, cis gender, homosexuality, indian history.

References

“Homosexuality” Frank O’ Hara. Poetry Foundation.23 March 2011. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/browse?contentId=31570

Altman, D. “Rupture or Continuity? Thenternationalization of Gaydentities”.n J.C. Hawley (Ed.), Postcolonial, Queer: Theoreticalntersections. Albany: SUNY Press. 2001. pp.19-34.

Bakshi, Sandeep. “Fractured Resistance: Queer Negotiations of the Postcolonialn R. Raj Rao’s The Boyfriend.” South Asian Review. 2012, vol. 33, no.2. pp. 1-19.

Dhasal, N. Arsefuckers’ Park. H. Merchant and N. Dhasal, Trans. H. Merchant Ed.Yaraana: Gay Writing from India .New Delhi: Penguin Books.1999.

Dollimore, Johnathan. Sexual Dissidence: Augustine to Wild, Freud to Foucault. Oxford: The Clarendon Press. 1991.

Foucault, M. “History and Homosexuality. Hochroth and J. Johnston, Trans.. nS. Lot ringer (Ed.), Foucault Live (Interviews, 1961-1984). New York: Semiotext. 1996.

Foucault, M. The History of Sexuality. London: Penguin.1996.

Fuss, Diana.nside/Outside: Lesbian Theories, Gay Theories. London: Routledge.1991.

Goldie, Terry. “R. Raj Rao’s The Boyfriend: A Model of thendian Homosexual?” Association for Commonwealth Literature and Language Studies (ACLALS). University of British Columbia. Vancouver. 17-22 August 2007. pp. 1-13. Conference Presentation.

Grossman, A. Queer Asian Cinema: Shadowsn the Shade. New York: Harrington Park Press. 2001.

Katz, J.N. The Age of Sodomitical Sin. New York and London: Routledge.1994.

Kavi, Ashok Row (26 September 2010),”Too ueer to be true”,news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/s out h_asia/3001126.stm (BBC:Zubair Ahmed “Gay Bombay comes out,” June 19, 2003)

Menon, Nivedita. “How Naturals Normal: Feminism and Compulsory Heterosexuality.”  Because Have a Voice: Queer Politicsnndia. Eds. Arvind Narrain and Gautam Bhan.  New Delhi: Yoda, 2005. pp. 33-39.

Miller, D.A. The Novel and the police. New Delhi: Penguin. 1988

Nayar, Pramod Kumar. Literary Theory Today. New Delhi: Prestige Books. 2011.

Puniyani, R. Communal Politics: Facts versus Myths. New Delhi: Sage Publications, 2001.

Rao, R. Bomgay. London: Aark Arts. 2006.

Rao, R. Introduction. R. Rao and D. Sharma (Eds.), Whistling the Dark: Twenty-One Queernterviews. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage, 2009.

Rao, R. Memories Pierce the Heart: Homoeroticism, Bollywood Style.n A. Gossman (Ed.), Queer Asian Cinema: Shadowsn the Shade. New York: Harrington Park Press. 2001.

Rao. R. The Boyfriend. New Delhi: Penguin. 2003.

Roy, Sandip. “What it’s like to be gay in Modern India.”telegraph.co.uk. Telegraph Media  Group. 27 Jan. 2015. n.pag. Web. 20 Aug. 2015

Sahgal, Tara. “Raj Rao’s The Boyfriend: A chaotic side of Mumbai’s Gay Subculture.” Indian Today Magazine. 2 June 2013. https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/society-the arts/books/story/

Saxena, Shambhavmi. “ Raj Rao, Author of India’s First Novel, About Gay relationships, Queer Politics and more.” Yoth Ki Awaaz. 2016. https://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2016/01/interview-with-r-raj-rao/

To cite this article

Devarshi Modi. (2020). ‘The Boyfriend’:  A Narrative of Inclusion and Search for Identity. John Foundation Journal of EduSpark, 2(1), 19-37.