These Asian Drag Queens Are Breaking Free of Cultural Gender Norms
Malai's first encounter with drag was at a queer club in Mumbai, India. A group of hijras, or members of the Indian transgender community, swept into the club, flashing 12-inch nail extensions with chains dangling between them and crowns made of spikes. They wore beautiful, embroidered sarees and danced until their chains broke and spikes fell. Malai was entranced. "I remember wondering, maybe this is the divine femininity," she recalls. "I didn't think I was transgender back then, but something