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According to Anukriti, in Nepal, mainstream discourses have often viewed queerness and sexuality as Western concepts. Furthermore, the existence of queer folks and their sexuality are rarely talked about or prioritized, which has not only led to one-dimensional understanding of queer sexuality but has also led to lack of comprehensive sex education and awareness among the Nepali queer community.
To change this one-sided narrative, Anukriti has created Pleasure talks Guff-Gaff series. “My prior experience of researching on pleasure based sex education prompted me to choose this topic and contexualize it for a Nepali audience,” Anukriti explained. Additionally, she wanted to “center the concept of queer joy and create space for queer individuals to come together in community and be themselves.”
Therefore, the workshop series holds spaces for queer folks to come together and talk about sex, pleasure, Nepali culture, and its connection to queer politics. The whole series is guided by a discussion based presentation, prompting participants to debunk their idea of sex, what pleasure means to them, and find community among queer folks.
Project Development
- The first phase of the project focused on brainstorming for the workshop topics and the development of a loose work plan/ outline for the workshop series.
- In the second phase, Anukriti worked on identifying and applying to grants.
- In the third phase, Anukriti applied for the Global Shapers Kathmandu Hub. This was successful, Anukriti became a part of the Shapers community. She looks forward to pitch her project and explore avenues to sustainbly grow it within and beyond the community.
Challenges along the way
Anukriti moved back to her home country, Nepal, during the implementation part of the project. “While I was dedicated and passionate about the project, it took me some time to transition back to my hometown, rekindle my previous activist/advocacy connections, identify grant opportunities, and apply for them,” she acknowledged.
It is important to be realistic with your project, make peace with its limitations as well as plan for a plan B and a plan C as you execute.
“It is important to be realistic with your project, make peace with its limitations as well as plan for a plan B and a plan C as you execute,” Anukriti recommends to anyone working on their own projects. “Additionally, now that I have identified a potential avenue, I am also learning the importance of making time for prep-time, for fully understanding the context and the need of the topic you are working in.”
Next Steps
“I have identified potential avenues in Kathmandu, and will be starting off my pitch and project implementation in days to come,” Anukriti shared. “Once we have hosted in-person events, the workshops will also be executed online for a wider range of audience,” she added.
Updated September 2024
