India's First LGBT+ App is Finally Here!

“The app has been made by the people of the community and its allies, for the people of the community.” says Ishaan Sethi, the co-founder of India’s first homegrown LGBT+ community and networking app.

From the Naz Foundation case to the recent notice on the plea filed by hotelier Keshav Suri, we have come a long way in making India a better, more safer place for the LGBT+ community. Numerous Pride parades have been held over the past year. Goa, Jaipur and Lucknow witnessed their first ever Pride parade whereas Delhi and Bangalore held their 10th Pride Parade. However, as a society we still have a long way to go in the acceptance of the community.

Ishaan, from the very beginning had been perceived as more feminine, he couldn’t resonate with the idea of masculinity that our society has been infested with. He was bullied through school for being different and away from the norms. “As a kid, you learn & constantly try to brush these things off in order to survive. You may even do inauthentic things to satisfy a status quo so you're no longer the "odd one out" - often, denial is a real & painful part of the process. It’s much later that you realise how much all this really affected you.” said Ishaan, following that most Queer suicides are a result of isolation. Growing up when he was attracted to men, he started feeling like something was wrong with him.

In a time when even heteronormative relationships amongst teenagers were looked down upon at his school, merely talking about a homosexual relationship was out of the question. Especially when no one, including himself was familiar with the concept of homosexuality. “We, the 90’s kids, didn’t have open conversations like kids today do.” he said. For a very long time, he was in denial of being gay. It was only during his undergraduate years at Brown University that he finally accepted that his own sexuality and his truly authentic self.

“If you be your authentic self, you’re bound to do better in the future.”, his university had always taught him, he said. The university not only had one of the largest queer and ally student group, but also had very supportive teachers who’d encourage them to explore. Once he were to move to Portland for his job, Ishaan decided that he’d start this new chapter of his life by finally coming out as who he really was.

After years of being in the United States of America, when he was to come back to India in the february of 2014, he was afraid of going back into the closet due to his past experience with the lack of acceptance. Having been here for a while, when he wanted to meet new people who he could resonate with in terms of his sexuality and mentality, Ishaan turned to the mainstream dating apps. That was when he got to know about the shadiness of these apps.

Ishaan first met Sachin Bhatia, the co-founder of Make My Trip and TrulyMadly , when he worked with Sachin through his previous start-up for analytics. TrulyMadly, is an app to meet new people which revolves around ensuring the safety of women on similar apps. When the app went live, Sachin had a lot of requests from the LGBT+ community to build an app as safe as this for the community. Although a great supporter and ally, he did not want to create something for the community he couldn’t completely understand or resonate with. That is when the idea was discussed by the both of them. It was later that they realised that Delta, as an app had a much larger mission. It was to create a safe space where the people of the community could not only meet like minded people, but also come together as whole to function in a better way.

The Delta App aims at building a platform that caters to the unique challenges faced by the LGBT+ community in India. The app essentially consists of three parts: Delta Connect, live now, is creating a safe place for users to meet verified, like-minded people through powerful security & compatibility methods. Delta Network, going live in the next few months, will provide a centralized space for users to find LGBT inclusive venues, businesses, professionals & other resources in addition to a calendar of events, across India. Delta Community, to be launched thereafter, will power a secure space for users to explore shared interests, access peer networks & engage in discussions & forums.

The aspect of Delta that is live now, the Delta Connect aims at helping people find like minded people in a safe, and secure manner, based on compatibility rather than just superficial parameters such as "looks & location". Every user on the app is verified by a team of people, thus eradicating any spam whatsoever. It has also been gamified to build a trust score by being awarded “sparks” by the fellow members of the app. The higher your trust score, the more Sparks you get to use on the app & the more perks you get. This helps the users in better selection of people and ensures the credibility of the users. It also lets users moderate the app for themselves by encouraging people to create a high trust environment for everyone.

The Delta Network is a platform where the people from outside the community, as allies, can strengthen the community by providing safe spaces for them. Companies like The Lalit Group of Hotels, Olive Group, Urban Clap, Miss Malini, and more are a part of the Delta Network. This is the way we, as heterosexual binary people can help the community out. “All we need is to know that when we go to these places, we wouldn’t be judged or discriminated against. Or that if I get a job with this firm, I know I can be my true self, without any harassment and therefore way more productive at work”, he said emphasising the need for places where the people of this community are treated as they would treat anyone else - with respect and dignity.

“A significant portion of our users are people from small towns who often don’t have anyone to talk to, or anyone they can confide in. Our goal is to make sure none of us feels alone.” The Delta App is one step forward for the population under the LGBT+ umbrella. The app is available for both Android and IOS.