Manvendra Singh Gohil—or Prince—is a face that doesn’t just adorn the palace walls in Rajpipla, Gujarat. He has, since coming out of the closet in 2006, used his platform to talk about LGBTQ rights and what it means to be a gay man in India.

Gohil has come a long way; from being shunned by his family, to being invited as a guest on Oprah Winfrey’s show (which he says was a turning point in his life), as well as playing the role of an undercover prince on what he calls another scripted reality show.

He is now in the news for opening up his palace grounds to marginalised LGBTQ persons; Gohil sees a future where he will not just provide them with shelter but also help them with vocational skills. He aims to do this by establishing a learning centre by mid-2019—for which he is currently raising funds on the crowdfunding site Ketto—to help the LGBTQ community become truly independent.

Prince talks to The Patriot about the decriminalisation of gay sex, its countering paradox i.e. the government, and about his own struggles that have pushed him to do more for a community that has been shunned and oppressed in Indian society in the past decade.

First, of course, your reactions to the SC verdict striking down Section 377.

This is a historic day for us. Today is the true Independence Day. While India may have got its independence on August 15, 1947, this is the day we, the LGBTQ people, have finally got our independence from colonial laws that have suppressed us.

It’s the victory of rights and the truth. This will help our community truly be free and be accepted by society and get our social rights.

What is your aim behind opening an LGBTQ friendly learning centre?

The idea to do so came from my own life. When I came out as gay to the media in 2006, I was thrown out of home, disowned and disinherited, and made to feel socially and financially disempowered.

In India, parents have a very difficult time in accepting their child as gay or lesbian. Even despite telling them, they will pester you to get married to the opposite sex.

Therefore it’s very important to empower the community to be able to support themselves. This is why I’m starting a learning centre—to educate the community, help them choose a vocation, to teach basic skills like computers and English language, which are not a luxury but more of a necessity. 

Is the Centre aiming to help those who come from an economically weaker background?

Some in need of help are not necessarily from a weaker financial condition. Sometimes, even parents don’t build the capacity of the child.

Eve with my friends, I’ve seen that they don’t educate themselves well, and just enter the family business, which means that they are completely dependent on their parents. They cannot enjoy their freedom, and when the time comes to get married, you’re completely doomed because you’re at their mercy—financially. 

Do you help in sheltering men and women who have been thrown out of their homes?

Other than the learning centre, I am also building a shelter home that will house anywhere between 20-25 people. At present, if someone comes to us seeking help, we do whatever we can for them, in our own capacity.

If someone is thrown out of their home, they will be on the road. They are rejected by their own family and friends which leads some of them to even contemplate suicide.

Last year, we had a transgender person from New Jersey come and stay with us. This person spent almost six months with us. We spoke to her parents who did not treat her well after she underwent a sex realignment surgery. The dialogue had a positive outcome, with her father, who was a transphobic, coming and staying at the centre.

They (parents) realised how important it is to support their child. We work with parents and educate them and even seek those parents’ help who have accepted their child.

How is your relationship with your parents now?

The royal establishment where the ground has been opened to LGBTQ persons was a gift from my father, as a sign of reconciliation. The 15 acres was gifted to me by him. Even the foundation stone for the LGBTQ centre was laid down by my father.

See, that’s why I don’t blame them—but blame the ignorance. I may have done the same thing. Even educated people don’t know about homosexuality—so then forget about the others!

Also, what I learnt was that when they (parents) see the value in you, they then bring you back into the family. When my family disowned me, I was called by Oprah Winfrey the very next year in 2007, to appear on her show. That was a turning point for me.

There are a lot of Oprah fans in the royal family, so now they feel very proud of me. They say you’re the only royal from India who has been on Oprah’s show. My cousins and nephews want to take selfies with me because they realise I’m of value. Else, why would Oprah call me all the way to Chicago? I’m the only Indian to be on her show three times. Not just that, but I’ve also been on Keeping up with the Kardashians. 

I advise my friends to become something in life and then they’ll (your family and friends) see value in you, and the same society, the same parents, the same friends that threw you out, will embrace you.

The people of Rajpipla burnt your effigies. How do they respond to you now?

Today, I was taking a 94-year-old blind lady to the bank to open an account. You see, I don’t just work for gay rights—I fight for all rights. So, when I took her there the whole bank staff came and cooperated by helping us.

The town does not see me as a gay person. They see me as an activist and as a social worker. People have come and apologised to me for burning my effigies and discriminating against me, but I don’t blame them. I blame their ignorance.

Things have changed for the better.

Was Undercover Princes—the documentary-series you were part of more than a decade ago—the first time you had gone out on a date with a man?

I basically did that show because it was my first opportunity to be on a show after Oprah. It was a show where I wanted to go undercover and find out about the struggles one goes through in life when you’re actually posing to be someone else. It was an experiential thing.

It also gave me an idea that if I have to date a guy, would they be interested in me if I wasn’t the person that I am? But again, the fact is that most reality shows are unreal. They are scripted. They will do anything for TRPs. I got my learning and experience though through it. 

Another reason why I take such opportunities is that it helps me reach out to people in different spheres. My aim is to do as much advocacy to reach out to people as well as the general audience. It helps reduce homophobia.

How has the government of Gujarat responded to you and your work?

They have funded and supported my organisation since 2001. I’m also a representative from the gay community, in the committee of the Gujarat State Aids control society.

Even in this, you can see the paradox. While on one hand, they call us criminals under Section 377, on the other hand, the government is supporting and funding us.

The government tries to help us whenever we need their references.

How did you feel about the Supreme Court hearing on Section 377? Do you believe a positive outcome is near?

Section 377 is a dispute of humanity versus hypocrisy. If there are any humanitarian values left in our country, then we stand a chance to win, but if the hypocrites in our country outnumber the humanitarians, then we will lose.

It’s basically quite simple. The reason we lost earlier was because the hypocrites in the country and because the religious leaders came against us. It was the government that instigated them. They are playing an important role in our judicial system. You may say that our judiciary is independent but it’s not. The governments’ interference is there and has always been there.

I would even like to add that it was the fault of the ruling party to keep a law of the British colonial law based on the Victorian molarity which violated the Indian constitution, even after independence,

This law not only targets the homosexual population but the entire Indian population. This law affects each and every citizen, irrespective of whatever you are—it talks about penetrative sex without resulting in procreation. Even a married man and woman who are indulging in any sexual act which will not result in a baby is a criminal. You’re only allowed to have sex is if you’re not going to have a baby—that was Queen Victoria’s thinking.

But the government said it was up to the SC to decide about section 377.

It is very clear the government wanted the SC to postpone the hearing. Again, I’m bringing back the term humanity vs hypocrisy. The Supreme Court has more humanitarian values than hypocritical. It asked the government to shut up because it had been given enough time to decide. They were instead told that if you have a problem, then give a response in court.

You have seen how open-minded the Bench is. My friends who have filed petitions are all very positive about the judges being very favourable towards them in this case. Even some religious leaders have withdrawn…

After all, the religious leaders are hypocrites who cannot keep winning on the basis of falsehood. But the judgement is still delayed because of the government’s vested interests.

Do you think India’s viewpoint is changing?

Definitely—change is happening in all spheres. It may be slow but there is change. Recently, a university offered me to conduct a module. It was a change that came from them. It was Karnavati University in Ahmedabad which invited me to do the talk; the Vice Chancellor announced that he wanted to have an entire module on LGBTQ issues for law students. It was a dream come true for me.

I have conducted a certified course on sex and sexual identity and all possible sexual identities existing on this earth. For any type of change, it will happen through the medium of education. Therefore, we must teach the students.

Forget about LGBTQ issues, our country lacks basic sex education. It’s very important for students to learn this so they themselves can become educators.

 Sashikala VP is a reporter with The Patriot.