Manoj Bajpayee to Sushmita Sen: Bollywood’s Queer role icons

In a country where mainstream cinema has long hesitated to represent queer lives authentically, several Indian actors have stepped up to portray stories of love, loss, identity, and resistance. These performances didn’t just break stereotypes—they humanized them. From early underground films to present-day commercial successes, here’s a journey through the actors who gave voice, face, and heart to India’s LGBTQ+ narratives.

Ramesh Menon and Edwin Fernandes

In The Pink Mirror, released in 2003, Ramesh Menon and Edwin Fernandes played Bibbo and Shabbo, two drag queens entangled in a rivalry over a young man’s affection. With exaggerated flair and emotional depth, their characters stood out as unapologetic, vibrant, and full of agency—something rarely seen in Indian cinema at the time.

Sanjay Suri

Suri`s moving performance in My Brother… Nikhil (2005) brought sensitivity to the role of a gay athlete diagnosed with HIV during a time of deep stigma. As Nikhil, he portrayed strength wrapped in silence, carving space for conversations around homophobia, health, and family acceptance.

Arjun Mathur and Rahul Bose

In the 2010 short film I Am Omar, Arjun Mathur and Rahul Bose played lovers navigating the trauma of a police encounter rooted in sexual orientation. Their chemistry, tinged with fear and tenderness, helped illuminate the quiet violence of being queer in public spaces.

Rituparno Ghosh

Ghosh delivered one of his most introspective performances in Memories in March (2011), portraying a grieving man who had lost his partner in an accident. The role, grounded in emotional restraint, reflected the inner world of queer love and mourning with elegance and pain.

Kalki Koechlin and Sayani Gupta

In Margarita with a Straw (2015), Kalki Koechlin and Sayani Gupta shared a romance that was rare and revolutionary. Koechlin played Laila, a woman with cerebral palsy discovering her bisexuality, while Gupta portrayed Khanum, a blind activist. Their love story brought disability and queerness together with touching realism.

Pranay Pachauri

The 2015 coming-of-age film Time Out featured Pachauri as a high school student grappling with his sexual orientation while hiding it from his younger brother. His understated performance captured the loneliness and fragility of adolescence in a heteronormative world.

Manoj Bajpayee

Bajpayee’s haunting portrayal of Dr. S.R. Siras in Aligarh (2015) remains one of the most poignant in Indian cinema. As a professor suspended for being gay, his quiet dignity and heartbreak offered an unflinching look at institutional oppression and the right to privacy.

Fawad Khan

In Kapoor & Sons, released in 2016, Fawad Khan challenged Bollywood’s macho norms by playing a closeted gay man within a dysfunctional family. Without flamboyance or pity, his performance highlighted the quiet compromises and emotional costs of hiding one’s truth.

Maanvi Gagroo

Gagroo made a memorable appearance in 377 AbNormal (2019), a docudrama that explored the landmark legal battle against Section 377. Though brief, her role contributed to the chorus of voices reclaiming queer identity in the courts and on screen.

Rajit Kapur

In Do Paise Ki Dhoop, Chaar Aane Ki Baarish (2019), Kapur played a melancholic lyricist who forms an unconventional family with a sex worker and her child. His character’s queerness was treated not as a plot twist but as a quiet constant, giving the film emotional maturity.

Ayushmann Khurrana and Jitendra Kumar

The romantic comedy Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan, released in 2020, was a turning point in commercial cinema. Khurrana and Kumar’s roles as two men in love challenged patriarchal family structures with humour and sincerity, marking a rare moment when queerness headlined a mainstream film.

Sonam Kapoor Ahuja and Regina Cassandra

In Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga (2020), Kapoor played a young woman hiding her sexuality from her traditional Punjabi family. Cassandra’s role as her love interest brought the emotional centre of the story to life. Their performances helped normalize queer love stories in middle-class Indian households.

Vaani Kapoor

Kapoor took on a rare role in Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui (2021), playing a trans woman navigating love and selfhood. The film faced critique for casting a cis actor in the role, but Kapoor approached it with grace and sincerity, shedding light on the unique challenges of trans identity in Indian society.

Benjamin Daimary

In Jonaki Porua (Fireflies), released in 2021, Daimary portrayed a trans teen in rural Assam with raw vulnerability. As the first openly gay actor to win a national award, his role offered an authentic and regional representation of gender exploration.

Rajkummar Rao, Bhumi Pednekar and Gulshan Devaiah

Badhaai Do (2022) tells the story of a lavender marriage between a gay man and a lesbian woman seeking freedom from societal pressure. The trio’s chemistry was compelling, and their performances gave a layered, emotional portrayal of how queer Indians continue to navigate family and tradition.

Neelay Mehendale

In Cobalt Blue (2022), Mehendale played a young writer who falls for a mysterious tenant. His portrayal of first love—unfiltered, painful, and poetic—captured the innocence and intensity of discovering desire in a society that doesn’t always have space for it.

Madhuri Dixit

Dixit stepped into new territory with Maja Ma (2022), playing a devoted mother whose past unravels her seemingly perfect life. The film delicately explored queerness in older women—an often-overlooked experience—and Dixit’s performance brought both nostalgia and nuance.

Divya Dutta and Swara Bhaskar

In the 2022 short film Sheer Qorma, Dutta and Bhaskar played a queer Muslim couple confronting intergenerational tension. Their quiet, tender moments stood in sharp contrast to the discomfort and silence around them, delivering a powerful commentary on family and acceptance.

Sushmita Sen

Sen portrayed Gauri Sawant in Taali (2023), a series based on the life of the trans activist. Her commanding performance celebrated the courage it takes to be visible in a hostile society, making it a landmark role in trans representation on Indian television.

Karan Soni

In A Nice Indian Boy (2024), Soni played the titular character navigating love across cultures and generations. The film was a fresh take on queer South Asian identity in the diaspora, and Soni’s performance was equal parts charming and heartfelt.

From whispered secrets to public protests, from quiet family dinners to courtroom battles, these performances didn’t just reflect queer lives— they elevated them. As Indian cinema continues to grow more inclusive, these actors have played a crucial role in rewriting the narrative with compassion, courage, and authenticity.

This article first appeared on Mid Day