(Trigger warning: The story contains mentions of suicide, visual and textual descriptions of queer-phobic, transphobic slurs and hate comments. Readers discretion is advised.)
"His pronouns are now was/were."
"Main toh kehta hoon saare makeup karne wale ladko ko mar jana chahiye (All the men who wear makeup should die.)"
The online hate against 16-year-old queer make-up artist Pranshu continued to trickle in on their Instagram reel – even after their death by suicide on 21 November.
A class 10 student of Ujjain Public School and native of Madhya Pradesh, Pranshu was subjected to online bullying and harassment after their reel in a saree went viral during Diwali – which allegedly led them to take the tragic step.
Even as members of the queer community fondly remember Pranshu, they know that they were not the only queer individual to face online hate – and they won't even be the last. From death and rape threats to homophobic slurs, for many creators and activists from the LGBTQIA+ communities being subjected to cyberbullying on social media platforms is an every day thing.
As we speak to them, we try to find out why social media platforms like Instagram – where most of the LGBTQIA+ artists have an active following – are failing to provide them with a safe space.