Being Trans in India

Trans women are organizing to fight discrimination and oppression. Trans men face different problems because they’re often not recognized at all.
Ismat Chughtai

Ismat Chughtai’s Quilt and Queer Desire

Long before India decriminalized homosexuality—in September 2018—the short story "Lihaaf" sparked outrage and a lawsuit for its depiction of same-sex, intergenerational intimacy.
The noble Ikhlas Khan with a petition, c. 1650

The Habshi Dynasty of India

Amongst the hundreds of minorities within the Subcontinent, Black Indians of African origin stand out.
A study of facial expression and gesture, 1823

How Upper Lips Got Stiff

The truism that “boys don’t cry” is a Western social convention. Colonialism and imperialism made sure it spread East.
Three cats singing by Louis Wain

Six Cat Poems That Aren’t That Owl and Pussycat One

There's nothing practical about these felines. Meow.
A falling leaf

Eleven Poems for Fall

Cozy up to autumn with verse from Dylan Thomas, Rainer Maria Rilke, Robert Frost, Rita Dove, and more.
Night Before Christmas

10 Classic Christmas Stories

We've gathered up some of our favorite literary takes on Christmas.