If you ever interact with Sonam Kapoor on a personal level, you will discover one character trait very quickly. Besides being a riot, she is full of passion for things that concern her – be these her family, friends, work, colleagues, or even issues she believes in strongly.
Parking myself in front of the TV to watch Koffee with Karan this Sunday, the last thing I expected to see was Sonam Kapoor give two minutes of air time to talking about section 377. Even as Karan Johar mocked her for providing “social commentary” on all matters, Sonam did not allow the matter to be taken lightly. When the conversation digressed, she brought it back to section 377. At 13:20 minutes in the recorded interview, she says:
About a year and a half ago, I came out of the closet. But I came out figuratively, as a person. I really empathize with people who want to be themselves and I think article 377 is detrimental to that. In a lot of ways, it’s a setback not only to people who are homosexuals or gay or lesbian. It’s also a setback to people who just want to be themselves and who don’t want to conform.
Article 377 is a step back for a country. It’s extremely unfortunate that the Supreme Court has ruled it the way it has. There’s too much objection about it, and that’s why I’m being so vocal about it.
Not only is she vocal about her own beliefs, Sonam goes on to lecture her father when he claims to not have any opinion on the matter. She rightfully points out that because celebrities have an effect on people, they should not shy away from voicing their opinions about important issues. Clearly, for Sonam, that issue is Section 377.
Her vocal support for the LGBT cause has earned Sonam criticism and more. Haters called her obnoxious and snobbish, saying she was only following a trend which considered “gay to be cool.”
I beg to differ: if Sonam wanted simply to ride the “cool” wave, she would have conveniently contributed to the hullabaloo surrounding Section 377 in December, or during Mumbai Pride in January, when the issue was hot news. Instead, her flawlessly-made statement comes on a popular TV show at a time when the LGBT community is struggling to highlight the issue in the media. When Sonam made the unscripted statement on the show, she was simply being her hurricane self. She came, she lectured – not even sparing her own father (urf Jai Singh Rathod, aka Jack Bauer) – she stood up for what she believed, and went back to being her happy-go-lucky self.
In a country where spokespeople for the LGBT cause are sorely needed, one woman stands up for our rights without so much as being asked. She even re-tweeted our own video ‘Happy in Gaysi Land’ following her own initiative and conviction. For this alone, I think she deserves respect and support from our community.
Now, if only I could get her to show up on Dirty Talk one day! **faints in the corner**
