An exhibition in Sandringham is honouring South Asia's historical acceptance of queerness as part of Auckland's Pride Month.
Beyond Taboos: Representing Us is presented by Aunty's House, a collective focused on celebrating the South Asian diaspora in New Zealand, and Migrant Maharanis, a collective dedicated to South Asian migrants.
The exhibition highlights six queer South Asian creatives: Amita Kala, Shawn Wimalaratne, Adam Banoori, Serena Mani, Sonya Prabha and Amandeep Rakhra.
"Reclaiming our identity is so important because it literally existed and it's just been blurred," said Amita Kala, director and founder of Aunty's House.
Kala, a third-generation Gujarati born in South Africa, moved to New Zealand when she was 10.
Kala said Sandringham was a deliberate choice for the exhibition.
"I think Sandringham is an iconic place within South Asian culture," Kala said. "We're not the minority in this small bubble."
Amita Kala Photo: RNZ / Yiting Lin
Anndivya Ram, founder and co-director of Migrant Maharanis, shared a similar sentiment.
"When I think of Sandringham, I see it like a small Indian town," Ram said. "I just love driving past it. It gives me a little taste of what it's like going back to India. Connecting it to a central location that feels like home was important."
Born to Samoan and Indian parents, Ram was raised in Auckland.
Ram said one of the main challenges in organising the exhibition was ensuring authentic representation of queerness in history.
"Making sure we represent queer voices properly and authentically, while also highlighting themes of queerness in history, was a huge task," Ram said.
Shruthi Priya Balaji, co-director of Migrant Maharanis and the exhibition's photographer, said South Asians historically accepted gender fluidity.
"It was very present and very accepted, and it almost feels like we're being gaslit - like it never existed in the first place," Balaji said.
Balaji, who was born in India and moved to New Zealand at the age of five, highlighted how South Asian storytelling traditions have influenced historical records.
"In Eastern cultures, documentation is often verbal, passed down through generations, rather than written down like in the Western approach," Balaji said.
Balaji said exhibitions like this helped to raise awareness about the gender fluidity of the past.
"I think there's still a lot of work to be done," said Adam Banoori, one of the featured artists.
Adam Banoori Photo: RNZ / Yiting Lin
Banoori, an Aucklander of Afghan and Pakistani descent, said living in New Zealand as a South Asian had not always been easy.
"It's definitely been a very difficult journey," Banoori said.
However, Banoori said communities and events like this provided a sense of belonging.
"There are a lot of limitations we place on ourselves as South Asian people to appease the West," Banoori said.
"There's a perception that you have to be skinny, light-skinned - it's like colourism still plays a big role. Dark-skinned people are not as represented and celebrated in our communities as they should be."
Banoori called for more diverse representation.
"Growing up, I've always felt like I wasn't Afghan enough, but also not white enough," Banoori said. "That in-between representation is what we need. Events like this make me feel seen."
Shawn Wimalaratne Photo: RNZ / Yiting Lin
Shawn Wimalaratne, another featured artist, agreed.
"We should be able to celebrate mundanity - just doing what we want - rather than fighting for mere existence," Wimalaratne said.
Originally from Sri Lanka, Wimalaratne said events such as this were vital.
"It's really important because it says we're still here, and we're not going to change. The world might be taking steps back, but we're going to keep moving forward."
Auckland's month-long pride celebration includes its flagship Rainbow Parade on Saturday.
Established in 2019, Rainbow Pride Auckland organises multiple events, including last year's parade, which saw more than two dozen South Asian rainbow community members participate.
Banoori acknowledged the significance of pride but expressed reservations about its limitations.
"The ethos of pride is important - we should be proud of who we are and love ourselves unconditionally," Banoori said.
"But containing it to one month feels reductive. There needs to be more focus on the actual work we can do for the queer community."