ABSTRACT
This essay revisits the “desi-queer” who has been disguised, erased, and heterosexualized for decades, most recently through new-media platforms. I use the term “desi-queer” to denote a gay South Asian understanding of homosexuality. Desi-queers have their own variations and differences, but, in general, I define them as individuals who experience same-sex love and desire in ways that are culturally specific to South Asian history and culture. 1 A desi-queer can trace back the genesis of her heritage to the love story of the emperor Mahmoud and his slave Ayaz, and to the thousands of homoerotic love poems written in Persian, Punjabi, and Urdu. 2
