Interview with Hiten Noonwal

Colette Copeland
March 2024

Victoria Sails and Hiten Noonwal, 2024,
photo courtesy of the artist

I met Hiten through some mutual friends at National Institute of Design, where he is an alumni and guest faculty in the Apparel Design Department. We met at his family home in Rohini about 90 minutes north west of Delhi. I had the pleasure of meeting his parents, brother, sister-in-law, nieces and nephew. We spoke about Hiten’s elaborate creations—exquisitely crafted costumes, wigs and make-up for characters that exist in a liminal realm. Known for his performance art, as well as an LGBTQ+ influencer on social media, Hiten often reveals the transformation process on Instagram. We ended the evening with a magical recording session with Hiten sounded his mantra, “I am a free bird.”

Colette Copeland: I was reading one of your insta posts where you responded to a question about why you spend so much time creating intricate costumes. Your answer pointed to the underlying question of why you create and what role art plays in your life. You speak about the creation process as one of catharsis and healing in a world that does not accept you for who you are due to gendered societal rules. Please share some of your experiences as a young queer person/artist in India.

Hiten Noonwal: As far as I can remember people have always seen me as someone peculiar/strange/alien. From class 3 onwards my schoolmates started calling me various derogatory slurs like, 50-50, 2 in one, ladki/girl, hijara, sixer and so on. I was a lonely kid. People use to say don’t sit, talk or eat with him because you will become like him. It was very depressing. So, I found art as my companion. In the world of art there is no humiliation, no disrespect and no inequality. I started expressing myself through my art and my art healed me from all the negativity.

CC: This is a question for Victoria Sails. Your spirit and style embody the take-no-prisoners attitude of Marie Antoinette combined with a dose of Angelina Jolie’s character in Maleficent. You have often been accused of evoking sinister or evil vibes, but I see you as a fierce warrior. Please tell us your story and how you came to be. What is your message to nay sayers/haters of the world?

NH: People see my personification as a dark character, but I was born to fight the negativity. I embody the Goddess “Kali maa”. I look evil but I am an assertive character who fights the darkness. I slay the haters with my fierce positivity. I never give-up and I always win in the end.

“I have arrived after a long voyage
Fighting the waves and riots,
Owning my ship for hours
Putting on the feathers and flowers,
Nothing could harm me, reptiles or whales.
I am the winner baby–I am Victoria Sails.”

Impressions, photo courtesy of artist

CC: Hiten—during my visit, you showed me the collection of make-up impressions on tissues. You mentioned you have over 100 and we discussed the possibilities for exhibiting this collection as an installation in the future. These delicate paintings serve as ephemera from your performances, but also reveal the liminal space between Hiten and the personification/alter ego. I’m interested in discussing the liminality or positioning oneself on both sides of a boundary or threshold. What do these impressions mean to you as a gauge of identity and also as a signifier of time and place?

HN: When I dress up, I never want to wash away the character I become. Even after the performance I stay in the same character for hours. As a magical window or portal to revisit my personification, I save my makeup impressions. These impressions make it easier to connect me with the personifications, their world and their spirit. They always inspire me.

CC: Let’s discuss your role as an activist and influencer. After watching your Ted Talk, I was very inspired about your honesty with overcoming your struggles as a youth and how you encourage others to be their authentic selves. You also are unafraid to call out the haters. It takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there in such a public way, making yourself vulnerable to the public. How do you merge your roles as educator, artist and activist/influencer?

HN: As an educator I use my art to teach my students. I personify myself in various characters to teach the different subjects. For example, when teaching the History of Costume, I embody Cleopatra or when teaching Wearable Art, I show up as a specific work of art. The characters inspire my students to try their best in their classroom projects. Also, I have a male body. Me “a faculty” showing up wearing effeminate clothes and makeup tells my students about the limitless possibilities, freedom of expression and power.

CC: I wish I would have had a teacher like you when I was an undergrad. Perhaps it wouldn’t have taken me so many years to discover my hidden alter egos. What are you most excited about in your work right now? Is there a new alter ego that we can look forward to seeing in the future?

HN: I am very excited about my 31 days Image creation project that will happen in March 2024. You all will witness so many characters, personifications, headgears and costumes. This 31-day project is inspired by all the hate comments that I receive from social media. You can see it on my insta @ hiten.noonwal