Name: Manvendra Singh Gohil, 52
Who He is: Son and heir to the Indian Maharajah of Rajpipla
Why He Matters: In 2006, Gohil made history by coming out to an Indian journalist. He became the first out-gay prince in the world.
Related: India’s Gay Prince Says Transgender People Have Lived In His Country For 800 Years
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Why We’re Proud: Who says a prince can’t be a queen?
Even prior to his coming out, Gohil worked as an advocate, founding Lakshya Trust, an HIV/AIDS charity group. The trust also aids gay men in finding work—homosexuality is still radically stigmatized in India—and in helping elderly gay men find housing. In 2018, Gohil took his activism to a jaw-dropping new level of generosity in an age of selfishness: he turned part of his 15-acre palace into a home for queer youth who had been kicked out of their homes and otherwise brutalized.
For the prince, the gesture had an intense, personal motivation: his own mother disowned him when he came out. They no longer speak, even though they often live in the same palace.
“I want to give people social and financial empowerment, so eventually people who want to come out won’t be affected. They will have their own social security system. It won’t make a difference if they are disinherited,” Gohil told The Independent.
Welcome to Queerty’s Pride50. We’re celebrating the members from our community who are responsible for some of the most inspiring and extraordinary moments for LGBTQ people over the last year. See all the honorees
jkb
Good for him #respect
Kangol
Prince Manvendra is doing a great thing for LGBTQ people, and public openness is culturally and politically very important. India unfortunately still has a British colonial-era anti-gay law, “penal code Section 377” on the books, but India’s Supreme Court is allegedly planning to consider a challenge to the law with the possibility of ending it. Prince Manvendra’s courageous actions also could help sway public opinion in pushing the government to support the challenge to the anti-gay law.
irbaboon
A nobleman in every sense of the word