Sougata Basu and Mayank Kalra Are Inspiring A New Conversation Around Pride! Find Out More About Their Journey

Pride Month may shine a spotlight on LGBTQIA+ voices each June, but for creators Sougata Basu and Mayank Kalra, Pride is something they live every single day.

Known through their platform The Daddy Lyfe, the couple have spent years documenting their journey as partners and parents, sharing the joys, challenges, and ordinary moments that make up family life. Rather than letting their identity define every piece of content they create, they have built a community around love, parenthood, humour, and authenticity. Their recent comments urging brands to move beyond performative Pride campaigns and embrace year-round inclusion only reinforce a message they have consistently lived by: representation should be a long-term commitment, not a seasonal trend.

Sougata Basu And Mayank Kalra Have Turned Visibility Into Everyday Representation

Long before conversations around inclusion became more mainstream, Sougata and Mayank were already sharing their lives online with honesty and openness.

The couple met in Bengaluru and gradually built a life together before welcoming their daughter through surrogacy, a milestone they have spoken about publicly to help normalise diverse family structures in India. Through The Daddy Lyfe, they document everything from parenting moments and family vacations to birthdays, festivals, and everyday life, proving that while every family looks different, love remains the common thread.

Their content has resonated because it doesn’t rely on labels or stereotypes. Instead, it focuses on universal experiences that every parent, partner, or family can relate to, making representation feel natural rather than performative.

Pride Doesn’t End In June, And Neither Does Inclusion

This Pride Month, Sougata and Mayank joined a larger conversation around how brands engage with the LGBTQIA+ community. While appreciating organisations like Godrej for making meaningful efforts towards inclusion, they also stressed that true allyship cannot be limited to rainbow logos and June campaigns.

According to the couple, visibility is only the first step. Genuine inclusion means creating opportunities, fostering representation, and supporting LGBTQIA+ communities throughout the year, both inside workplaces and in public-facing campaigns.

That perspective carries extra weight because it reflects the way they have approached their own journey. Rather than appearing only during Pride conversations, they have spent years building visibility simply by living authentically and sharing their family’s everyday experiences.

In many ways, that’s what makes The Daddy Lyfe so impactful. Their story isn’t just about being seen—it’s about helping others feel seen too. Through parenthood, partnership, and purposeful storytelling, Sougata Basu and Mayank Kalra continue to remind audiences that Pride isn’t confined to a month on the calendar. It’s reflected in the freedom to live openly, love fully, and create space for everyone to belong.