New Delhi: Rakhi Sawant arrived at The Lalit New Delhi’s Crystal Ballroom to cheers, applause, and calls of “We people love you so much!” She took it all in with a smile, and the next minute, she was ready for the cameras.
“I have become a drag queen today,” Sawant told the media in her signature pap-style interaction at the launch of Kitty Su Beauty’s lipstick line on Saturday. “I love LGBTQ; all Indians should support them. Look at all my make-up, costume today, everything. It belongs to you, girls.”
Ahead of Battle Royale 2, the second edition of The Lalit’s national-level drag competition, the press was keen on asking Sawant about Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut. She dodged those questions with a nose crunch, imperiously asking for the “next question”. She did, however, stress equal rights for queer people.
“If the government can take taxes from queer people, why can’t it support them? For someone created a certain way by god, who are you to put a question mark on them? So, to the government, I say whatever rights we (cis-het people) have, they should belong to queer people too,” Sawant said in Hindi.
‘We’ve brought Hollywood to India’
It was clear that this wasn’t just another Saturday outing for Sawant. She was, for the very first time, interacting with people who love her dearly.
“It’s my first drag event, and I’m so happy that my group of LGBT people selected me… I thought this type of Met Gala look, I’d have to go to Hollywood for this. But we’ve brought Hollywood to India,” she added.
The creatives at Kitty Su had supplied Sawant with two gorgeous looks, both in crimson shades. It aligned with Kitty Su Beauty’s ‘Hotline’ lipstick shade, drag queen Hash Brownie pointed out during the media interaction.
But the high of the first glimpse of the ‘OG drag queen’ wore off fast, as Sawant left for a costume change before Battle Royale 2. It took about two hours for the lip sync battle to begin in earnest. But when Sawant finally stepped out with the other judges, she was decked out in an extravagant look dripping in jewels. The crowd broke out in cheers of “Rakhi, Rakhi, Rakhi” and erupted in applause when Sawant lifted the mic to say “Hello, guys.”
The wait had been worth it.
For make-up artist Roro, the selling point was neither Rakhi nor Battle Royale 2. They came because the event was happening in Kitty Su’s Crystal Ballroom, a larger space than the venues for other drag performances.
“Generally we only come when there’s a bigger space at Kitty Su. So many queer people want to come, but the space is generally so small and so hot, I can’t survive there. They should hold more events in bigger spaces like this,” Roro said.
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‘Rakhi Sawant is a queer icon’
Many of the straight women attendees were impressed not just with the performers, but the audience too. Mudita, a 22-year-old tattoo artist, was spellbound by the attendees’ maximalist attire.
“I didn’t think there would be such a crowd. I went in expecting normally dressed people, but I’m so surprised that so many turned up. And everyone’s so hot,” she said.
The lip sync battle unfolded as a knockout competition where two queens faced off and the winner advanced to the next round. Among the contestants were Miss Bhenji, Trixie Prema, Dark Fantasy, Noor Sins, Velvet Vortex, and Amit the Shining Star. Whacker Cracker was introduced as a wild card entry in the semi-final round.
Many of the audience members disagreed with the judges. Velvet Vortex, they felt, was robbed. Noor Sins, they protested, deserved to go further in the contest. Those who watch Drag Race would know this to be a cornerstone of any drag contest. However, the overall winner—Bengaluru-based Dark Fantasy—had both the judges’ approval and audience mandate.
“Let’s not forget, trans rights and human rights!” Lush Monsoon announced as the show ended to thunderous cheers.
At the contest, the audience would break out into calls of Rakhi Sawant’s name at regular intervals. When host Betta Naan Stop asked them who they thought was going to win, the answer was Rakhi. When the judges were asked for the winner’s name, the audience would be chanting Sawant’s name louder.
“Rakhi is always in drag. She’s a movement in herself,” said Sushant Digvikar, who performs as Rani Ko-HE-Nur. “It’s a bold step for her to come and support the event. She’s a star, and for her to come here… she’s a queer icon. We love her because she’s fearless, and that’s what drag is too. Unabashed self-expression.”
Sawant’s presence at the contest is significant for the Indian drag scene. She’s the first mainstream star to have celebrated it.
“Rakhi is the right Kitty Su woman, what Kitty Su stands for,” said Keshav Suri, Executive Director of The LaLiT Suri Hospitality Group. “I would love to have Rekhaji here next year. I hope one day she comes for an event of ours. I would die.”
(Edited by Saptak Datta)