“Shame Akash ! Don’t show us these pictures. It’s a sin even to look at them.”

This was the reaction of Jhomur, my sister-in-law, to my story about a group of homosexual men living in my neighborhood. Her reaction is typical. Religious beliefs and cultural standards of morality make homosexuality an unacceptable abomination in Bangladesh. The kote, as gays are called locally, are ostracized and thus live together in small communities. Yet social stigma is not enough to dent their unshakeable faith in life.