Brand strategist Harshala Gupte might have written The Boy In The Cupboard while sitting in a café on a summer afternoon, but the idea was brewing in her head for a while. The picture book, published in collaboration with queer collective Gaysi and illustrated by Priya Dali, is a heartfelt tale about a boy trying to understand himself and his place in the world. “The idea came from an informed place; I used to teach girls in a shelter home and my mother is a teacher, too. Often, I’d find myself at a loss of words on coming across instances where a boy carrying a pink bag would be bullied.” She recalls another instance where a Std II girl student was ostracised by peers because she had started to see hair growth on her arms. “I wondered to myself what kind of narratives these children are internalising. Where does this sense of discomfort come from?”

The book is an attempt to celebrate queer identities and make them more acceptable to children. That gender isn’t limited to boys and girls, and it’s time we stop assuming so, can be best done early and through storybooks, feels Gupte. “I often get asked if it’s too early to educate kids on these subjects. But when we talk about inclusivity, a lot of people think it’s limited to sexuality. That’s not really the case. Sexuality comes later; just telling them that there are going to be different kinds of people, will expand their understanding.” She says children need to grow up feeling less encumbered by rigid societal expectations.