‘I am who I am’: Sri Lankan queer community using TikTok as a space to ‘come out’

In postcolonial South Asian societies, there is a growing tendency of many queer individuals using social media, particularly TikTok, as a means to increase visibility. This study explores how queer individuals in Sri Lanka present themselves on TikTok, focusing on their gender identity and sexual orientation. Through a qualitative research approach, the study examines 20 TikTok accounts of Sri Lankan queer users from December 2022 to April 2024 and conducts 5 in-depth interviews with them, utilizing interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). The research explores how these individuals utilize TikTok as a platform for expressing their identities, highlighting the liberating aspects of the platform for queer expression. However, the study findings do not undermine the exploitation of their labour within neoliberal and consumerist frameworks, including homocapitalist ideologies. Grounded in phenomenological theories of subjectivity and gender performativity, the study underscores the significance of acknowledging the lived experiences of these individuals within their socio-cultural contexts, considering the impact of colonial legacies on perceptions of non-heteronormative identities and emphasizing the fluidity of queerness. It also discusses how TikTok functions as a space for queer visibility, expression, and popularity in Sri Lanka.