How LGBTQIA+ Stars Rock On Social Media

Sushant Divgikr

Instagram 3 Million

With a whopping following of three million on, Sushant Divgikr/Rani KoHEnur is famous for his Instagram handle @sushantdivgikr. Divgikr won the Mr Gay India 2014 title and has participated in international singing competitions for drag performers, such as the Queen of the Universe. Divgikr is a trans singer, actor, psychologist and drag superstar and goes by the pronouns he/she/they.

Through his social media account, he has successfully captured the attention of audiences. Divgikr has also been featured in Forbes 30 under 30 Asia, 2020, and Forbes Top 100 Indian digital creators power list 2022. Divgikr has a hand and a heart for the community, with social media posts stating, “any homegrown, female-owned, LGBTQIA+ owned small to medium businesses that need free shoutouts”. He also routinely discusses issues related to health and sanitation.  

Alok Vaid Menon

Instagram 1.3 Million

Alok Vaid Menon has a following of 1.3 million on Instagram and uses the they/them pronoun. Instagram handle is @alokvmenon. They are an actor, speaker, poet and comedian. Vaid Menon’s social media posts revolve around gender, fashion, trans history, the sex binary and cross-dressing. Many fashion brands have also engaged with Vaid Menon. They have appeared on HBO, MTV, BBC, CNN and featured in The New York Times. Vaid Menon has an audience in over 40 countries on over 500 occasions and is one of the leading voices in the realm of ungendered fashion. They use a combination of art, fashion design, comedy, sound art, runway shows and social media to express views on gender, sexuality and the evolution of gender norms.  

Dutee Chand

Instagram 1 Million

Dutee Chand has a following of one million on Instagram and is an Olympian, Arjuna Awardee and world gold medallist. Her Instagram handle is @duteechand. Chand holds the 100 meters record with a time of 11.17 seconds. When Chand came out as gay, her family did not take it kindly. She is the first Indian athlete to openly discuss her relationship and came out as queer in 2019. Chand frequently posts photos with her partner on Instagram. Additionally, she has participated in the Queen’s Baton to raise awareness about homophobia in the Commonwealth countries. In an interview with the Press Trust of India, she emphasised the importance of creating a safe and comfortable environment for LGBTQIA+ athletes to be themselves without fear of persecution or harm.

Trintrin

Instagram 400,000 +

Instagram handle @Trintrin, a.k.a. TrinetraHaldarGummaraju, goes with the pronouns she/her. She has a following of four lakh on Instagram. She is a transwoman and also doctor by profession. She has been seen in Made in Heaven, a popular series on OTT, which has raised awareness about the LGBTQIA+ population. She is the first transwoman surgeon in Karnataka. On her YouTube channel The Trinetra Method, she makes content that raises awareness on themes like gender and sexuality.

Priyanka Pal

Instagram 73,000+

Priyanka Pal’s Instagram handle is @artwhoring and has over 73,000 followers. She is a writer, illustrator and self-taught poet. She often posts cryptic social media posts regarding gender, politics, fashion and caste. She has been part of Gucci’s The Future is Fluid campaign in 2019. She also posts about body positivity and sexual freedom for women. Her Instagram illustration reads “Unnecessarily dug up roads mean elections are near!”.

“Like it physically pains me

To have to think of my body

And gender in any sort of congruence

That can be presented through any word

In the English dictionary, im afraid

But I must tell you

The binaries and the hierarchies of the world

Maintain this understanding

Of a very pushy painful incongruence,

it often feels like searing pain

to even think about it…”

Such are her Instagram posts.

VivekShraya

Instagram 35,000

VivekShraya is a trans artist model, actor, musician and author and works as an assistant professor for creative writing at the University of Calgary, Canada. She has written an award-winning book I’m Afraid of Men, which focuses on her childhood trauma as a girl. Her main focus is on music, literature, visual art, mental health, gender and sexuality. One of her Instagram post reads, “Being trans can often feel like a very lonely experience, and when we are made visible it is often not my choice, and just to be the targets of hate.”

Anjali Chakra

Instagram 250,000 +

Anjali Chakra has a following of over 2.5 lakh on Instagram. Her pronouns are she/her. Instagram handle is @anjalichakra. Recently, she was in the news due to her breakup with her partner who hailed from Pakistan. She wrote on Instagram, “This may come as a shock, but our journey is shifting. We have decided to call off our wedding and end our relationship due to infidelity committed by Sufi.” This made the lesbian relationship talk in every household and, in a way, raised awareness on how such relationships are also like any other relationship with fidelity and sadness as a given.