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We give
sex
a
good
name
About us
Partners & Collabs
Sections
Sex-Ed Basics
Self-Help / Self-Love
Personal Stories
Our Erotic India
Family, Society and Philosophy
Sexual Etiquette and Consent
Relationships and Dating
Teaching Modules
Videos
Fun Stuff
#lgbtiq+
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I was prepared to sulk, until I saw a tiny girl with a hockey stick
A serendipitous meeting with a movie character changed everything I had so far been told girls could be
Mar 18, 2024
Bind It!
A guide to chest binding from what to, to, how to use your binder
Mar 03, 2024
My bisexual panic
Of course, there were some guys I thought looked good. Who’d turn away from Wesley Snipes, Ryan Reynolds? But would I date a guy if I could?
Feb 05, 2024
He Had Sex With Me. Then Told Me I Wasn't Man Enough
A train journey and a sexual encounter with a closeted man makes Vibhu Vasudev ask why men hold rigid ideas about masculinity.
Nov 06, 2023
Peg, Peg Karne Laga: The Mazedaar History of Pegging and Why It Matters
How the term ‘pegging’ came to be and the larger questions it raises about gender roles and sex
Nov 03, 2023
Fucking Trans Women! How Mira Bellwether, a Trans Woman Wrote A Sex-Ed Guide For Her Lovers
The 80-page zine teaches you how bodies experience pleasure in unique ways far beyond the norm.
Jun 25, 2023
It Took Me Two Years To Realize I Had Been Raped
A male Dalit queer person on acknowledging the many shades of sexual assault.
Jun 19, 2023
Maitri Karar: A Gujarati custom that allow queer relationships legitimacy
When polygamy was banned in 1956, the Maitri Karar was invented to allow men to support their mistresses. And then, queer couples used it to live together legally.
Jun 16, 2023
From Sapphic Seasides to Political Pyaar! A Lesbian, Bisexual, Trans History of Mumbai
Where did the LBT Mumbaikar go for politics, party and pyaar!
Sep 21, 2022
Love was a stereotype. Friendship was radical. And then, I met her.
If witnessing a relationship slowly die out like a star collapsing into itself were a color, it would be tangerine.
Aug 05, 2023
What Does Fictosexual Mean?
Falling in lou with fictional characters koi fiction nahin!
Mar 17, 2023
Why Does The LGBTQ+ Community Love Frogs?
World Wildlife Day pe ek investigation!
Mar 03, 2023
Queer Art We Love!
From romantic lesbian anthems to photography that capture queer lives!
Jan 19, 2023
Hyenas, Orangatuns And Discovering My (A) Sexuality
Questions, questions, and I had no answers. Until a Reddit meme showed me "Asexuals are…"
Feb 27, 2023
Asexuality Ki ABC - An AOI Primer
Can asexuality transform how we see pleasure itself?
Oct 30, 2022
Stars In My Eyes ft. Meena Kumari
6 people tell us why the Tragedy Queen mattered to them on her birthday!
Jan 07, 2022
Breaking My Heart And Finding Myself
Imran on why queer break-ups are hard, but you can't lose yourself entirely in love.
Apr 01, 2022
Ageing Through A Queer Eye - What is Queer Gerontology?
Can a queer lens change how we think about old age?
Mar 25, 2022
The Many Journeys of an Old-Fashioned Butch: An Interview With Dr. Shruti Chakravarty
Dr. Shruti Chakravarty talks to us about queerness, gender, labels, community and love.
Mar 22, 2022
“It’s simple, to live life emotions are very important so why should you suppress them?” Lesbian Love and Freedom Journeys with Maya Sharma
An interview with Maya Sharma
Mar 13, 2022
Ek Se Bhale Do - The Story Behind AOI’s Two Laadli Awards!
The making of #AikaToTheBaika and #LesbianLetterExchange!
Dec 07, 2021
Where is my Education? A Transman’s Story
The everyday struggles of a trans man attending university.
Nov 01, 2021
5 Laws and Policies That Were Meant To Help Adolescents - So Why Didn't They?
Do these laws #Care for Indian adolescents? Or do they just seek to #Control?
Jun 24, 2021
Some of us need to be understood differently: Breaking Up and Mental Illness
Rukmini writes about her relationship and break-up, and how as a person with mental-illness, she wishes it could have been done differently.
Jul 29, 2021
Ten Tashan-Filled Tales On Being Trans : AOI’s Reading List for Transgender Day of Visibility
Ten books on being trans in India!
Mar 31, 2021
THE OTHER F WORD - A Poem
Running into woman-on-woman porn to rediscover sex
Dec 21, 2020
A Prostitute and A Saviour: A Diary
A trans-person's journey through sex-work and back
Nov 17, 2020
It Was ‘Twilight’. I Woke Up Bisexual.
How one can stumble upon one's (bi)sexuality with the help of fiction / fan-fiction
Sep 23, 2020
Romantic Sensual Asexual - That’s Me
Can one be asexual and terribly romantic too?
Aug 24, 2020
The Adorable Boys Who Love ‘Papa Bear’
Who decided that desire is only for the young?
Aug 21, 2020
S.W.A.G (Secretly We Are Gay) 2: Till We Meet Again
Revisiting an old lover with new realisations and self-admission.
Jul 23, 2020
June Rewind - #WhenWomenLoveWomen, All In One Place
Stories, histories and resources for queer women - ek dhamakedar package!
Jun 30, 2020
You've Got Mail! Letters Between An Older and A Younger Lesbian - Plain Text Version
Jun 24, 2020
Secret Loves And Broken Hearts: A Comic
A comic about queer desire, love, and loss.
Jun 26, 2020
Satrangi Ladki, Atrangi Khiladi: A Comic About Shiela
The many romances and realities of this dashing woman!
Jun 28, 2020
Steamy Shayari Alert! #WhenWomenLoveWomen in 19th Century Awadh
Some seductive Chapti poems from India's past!
Jun 23, 2020
Pehle App! Online Dating Tips for Queer Ladies from Queer Ladies
Confused about how to begin? Here's some tips from our queer Agents!
Jun 19, 2020
You’ve Got Mail! Letters Between An Older and A Younger Lesbian
How much has changed for women who love women in urban India?
Jun 24, 2020
Shiela Ki Jawaani Ki Anokhi Kahaani
An excerpt from Maya Sharma's Loving Women: Being Lesbian in Unprivileged India
Jun 13, 2020
THE L WORD - KONJUM HISTORY, ZARA GEOGRAPHY, THODA POLITICS
The many variations, slangs and slurs for the word 'lesbian' across the world!
Jun 11, 2020
"So Many Women, But It's Her I Love"
An excerpt from Maya Sharma's Loving Women: Being Lesbian in Unprivileged India
Jun 07, 2020
What Falling For My Friend As A Lesbian Taught Me About How We Express Friendship
Does queerness complicate the experience of falling for a friend?
Jun 15, 2020
S.W.A.G. Secretly We Are Gay
Two closeted gay men, who are married to women, fall in love with each other.
Mar 01, 2020
I Believe in the Promises Made by Passing Strangers: Cruising and the City
Leaving behind the threshold of our homes, what other boundaries do we cross?
Jul 23, 2019
Remembering the Life of Sweet Maria Through Art
A unique monument to the murdered trans activist reminds us of her life as well as the violence that trans people face in India
Jun 19, 2019
Finding Queerness Everywhere
Time for a new Sexy Saturday Songs playlist, this time by Vikram Phukan!
Jun 15, 2019
More Than An Identity: How I Realised My Struggle Was With Being Sexual, Not Homosexual
My identity as a queer person became a bit of a shield from the world of love, the world of sex
Jun 11, 2019
The AOI List of Queer Support Resources Of All Kinds
Are you a queer person looking for back-up and wondering where to find it?
Jun 04, 2019
‘Queer’ Kya Hai?
Your favourite agents are here with another #SuperSaralExplainer!
Jun 04, 2019
Q se Qawwali, Q se Queer Quties
Time for another Sexy Saturday Songs playlist!
Jun 22, 2019
How Shru Stopped Hating Herself (With A Little Help From Her Dad)
From self-harm and shame, to learning to be your own hero!
Apr 18, 2019
Muh Bole Rishte - 6 People Describe Their Chosen Families
Society might say “Only family is forever”, but here are stories of 6 people forming their closest bonds, beyond blood.
Feb 20, 2019
What the Law Tells Us about Relationships in India
You might be surprised – in good and bad ways.
Feb 19, 2019
Why are People Opposing the Surrogacy Bill?
Here’s a guide to help you out.
Jan 11, 2019
Not Sure Why People Are Protesting the Trans Bill? Here's A Quick Guide
Many amendments have been made to the Bill since it was drafted, but activists say it is still discriminatory, mainly for the following reasons.
Dec 26, 2018
How I Grew Out of My Turbulent Teens
Life as a schoolgirl was about trying to fit in; to be seen and not seen; self-hate and self-harm. Talking about it to other people was the first step in a new direction
Jan 17, 2019
Have You Watched This Sweet Film About Anshuman Travelling on the Metro?
The film is a lovely portrait of it sparkling protagonist finding his way in the world
Sep 14, 2018
a historic day
A short poem for September 6, 2018
Sep 13, 2018
Homosexuality in India: Old or New?
Here’s what Sahapedia has to say about Indian tradition and the current arguments about homosexuality in India’s Supreme Court
Jul 25, 2018
'I Hope that My Art Replaces Judgement with Acceptance'
I express queerness through my art, then it exists with all the politics and the complexities that surround it, whether it’s social or it’s personal.
Jun 30, 2018
Inside the World of Puu – A Beautiful Comic about Love
Puu is a webcomic about Saboor and Jameel, two housemates in Chennai, and other people whose lives intersect with theirs.
Jun 26, 2018
Izhaar-e-Ishq: Queer Voices in Urdu Poetry
Studying the work of Urdu ghazal poets showed me that their approach to sexual desire is far more fluid than I had realised.
Jun 21, 2018
Let All the Stars Inside Me Shine/ What I See is Me
Photographs from public performances of queerness.
Jun 14, 2018
Isn't A Whatsapp Love Story A Real Love Story?
Could you fall crazily in love with someone you've never met IRL?
Jun 12, 2018
Seven Indian Films We’re Excited To Watch This Year At KASHISH Film Festival
Here are seven Indian films playing at KASHISH that we’re keen to watch this year
May 23, 2018
Being Equal, Being Queer Rozana
May 17, 2018
What Is It Like To Have Sex and Love With Both Men and Women
Sex with men and with women is actually very different but it’s difficult to articulate the difference in sensation.
Mar 22, 2018
The AOI Queer Reading List : Naya Maal
A selection of recent Indian queer writing.
Jan 30, 2018
#QueerlyHeartbroken: A Twitter Chat With Sonal Giani
Queer Rights Activist Sonal Giani, on being Queer and Heartbroken, the common issues faced by queer people during break ups and how to deal with it.
Nov 01, 2017
Mard, Mann Aur Jealousy: 5 Men Talk about Dealing With Unusual Jealousies
Unusual jealousies men experience and how it affects the way they look at themselves as sexual beings.
Nov 16, 2017
What Intersex People Wished Everyone Knew About Them
Simple FAQ's to familiarize yourself with body beyond binaries.
Oct 26, 2017
WE MET ON GRINDR. NOW THE INTIMACY OF THE SEX WE HAD MAKES IT HARD FOR ME TO FORGET HIM
Some loves are sexual, where emotion, body and connection become powerfully joined in the intimacy of sex more than anything else. It is an intoxication, a nasha that’s hard to forget, because it runs deep.
Nov 08, 2017
my mother does not know i am wearing her sari. how long must I hide?
poetry and poetic prose by soz
Sep 29, 2017
A Thousand and One Stories of Coming Out
I learnt that people are always jockeying for power and invariably looking for that one thing to pick on you about. In my case, it is my sexual orientation
Sep 21, 2017
How Gujrati Porn Made Me Realise I Was Asexual
The way I was not feeling anything while watching porn, I did not feel any kind of attraction and sexual desire for anyone either.
Sep 14, 2017
I Came Out To My Mom And Now I Think She's Fomosexual
A mother's totally unexpected response to her daughter's coming out!
Aug 22, 2017
Watch Me As I Fall In Love: 5 Trans Persons Talk About Dating
Love is supposed to be the simplest thing, but it isn’t.
May 17, 2017
IT'S COMPLICATED! (BUT) A FULLY FABULOUS FEBRUARY ON AOI
Feb 08, 2017
Every Navratri Falguni Made Me Feel That Queer Is Ekdum Cool
A song of ishq for Falguni Pathak!
Oct 05, 2016
HETERO HOMO BI BI: SHIT BISEXUALS HAVE TO HEAR
Shit bisexuals have to hear.
Sep 23, 2016
I CALL HER MOSAMBI
Sep 23, 2016
WHICH WAY DO WE SLICE IT?
A poem by Jaya Sharma
Sep 13, 2016
In A Gay Bar You Can See Forever
An Indian man at 31, in a gay bar for the first time, experiencing male erotic tenderness for the first time.
Aug 01, 2016
LOVE ALL: THE UNLIMITED WAYS OF PANSEXUALITY
Today is International Pansexuality Awareness and Visibility Day! Read the unlimited ways Love Pans out! #AOIQuickies
Jun 28, 2022
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