STRAIGHT TO NORMAL (FLEXI PB)

‘God is the reason why I am
who I am. Nature is the reason why I am who I am. I don’t want to die because
of who I am.’ as a fifteen-year-old, Sharif D rangnekar could not fathom why
he felt aroused watching men dance in a jermaine Jackson music video. He soon
found the ‘answer’ in a book that told him that this was just a Phase and it
would end once he got married. He almost did. Straight to normal is the
autobiography of a gay man who had to battle bouts of confusion,
vulnerability, fear, dejection and depression and also unlearn the normative
definition of lust, love and everything in between, in order to thwart the
desire to kill himself and find a reason to live. Through the twists and
turns of hate and affection, love and break-ups, violence and near peace, he
finally finds the courage to speak for himself and others like him. After
several failed attempts to write this book due to the fear of the law and
society, as a fifteen- old gay man who does not want to see a single person
losing hope and life, Sharif has written his story where he describes how he
gained an identity but lost a near lifetime, looking for love and
companionship. Through this book, he hopes that anyone who feels pressure to
appear ‘straight’ finds the strength to be who they are.