What does it mean to grow up as a queer Tamil boy? When I think of my own childhood here in Sydney, I have vivid memories of trying on my mother’s heels, wearing lipstick, playing with dolls, and wishing I were a Bharatanatyam (classical Indian dance) performer. In a world that continues to insist upon policing gender through social and sexual activity, I was fortunate enough to have parents who chose to support my playful preferences rather than punish me for them.

As a child, I did not identify with being gay nor did I have any concept of the term. Indeed, I was too busy oscillating between pretending to be Sailor Moon or Xena to care. Coming from an immigrant Sri-Lankan Tamil family, however, I rarely found other boys who were willing to indulge these proclivities.