Mumbai celebrated queerness with vibrant colours at the Mumbai Queer Pride 2025 from the historic August Kranti Maidan. Members and supporters of the queer community participated in the march with the motto of No Going Back to cis-gendered life, closets they came out from and queerphobia.

On Saturday, the annual Mumbai Queer Pride walk was organised by the ‘Mumbai Queer Pride’ collective, which has been voluntarily formed by individuals, groups, organisations, and formal and informal collectives of individuals from and around Mumbai, who identify themselves with the queer cause and actively work for furthering queer rights.

The Queer Pride Walk commenced from the historic site of August Kranti Maidan, which is the place where the Quit India Movement began. The walk progressed towards Nana Chowk, Frere Bridge, N Powell Junction through the Lamington Road, Opera House Junction and ended back at the August Kranti Maidan through the Kennedy Bridge.

The Mumbai Queer Pride Walk 2025 was a clarion call to the world that there is “No Going Back” to being cis-gendered (a person whose gender identity corresponds with the sex registered for them at birth).

Mumbai Queer Pride Walk was a celebration of diverse identities on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, a safe and inclusive space to raise awareness on issues related to queer individuals, and a demand for their social, economical and political inclusion, based on the rights granted by the Indian Constitution.

The annual queer pride walk was not just a celebration of diversity and inclusivity, but also a model for eco-friendliness. It embraced reusable materials, promoted local sourcing, and advocated for mindful practices. It aimed to make the event a shining example of how the LGBTQ+ community and its allies can contribute positively to the environment.

“The right to exist with dignity and authenticity is a global movement and the great island of the famously empathetic Mumbai is one major chapter in it. The pushbacks around the world are a reminder to each one of us to march forward and to rally around each other, as one queer community, and as friends, family, colleagues and acquaintances to ensure that people in India and across the world get their absolute and equal rights,” said one of the organisers.