Want to spice up your love life with a racy picture or a titillating dance, but unable to get over the awkwardness? You’re not alone, and it doesn’t have to be this way! Last year’s Boudoir photography workshop, part of 2023’s installment of Erotikama is 2024’s Selfie Boudoir. It teaches participants how to take “Not Safe For Work” (NSFW) photographs to share with others. “Last year, there was erotic writing and narration with the photography, but we observed that many people are not comfortable or need guidance on how to pose for shots to share with partners,” says Akshay Jha. He and Aili Seghetti are co-founders of The Intimacy Curator which holds the annual erotica festival. “The phenomenon of NSFW pictures is not as unheard of as it was a few years ago, and is now a part of sexting and how people are intimate with each other. There’s still a large gap in wanting to send an NSFW photo but being awkward about how to shoot it,” he adds.

Plonked right in the middle of the festival, the workshop is from 1 pm to 4 pm and costs Rs 2,500. The day begins at 9 am with a burlesque how-to conducted by celebrity choreographer Sahifa Shaikh. The three-hour workshop is one of the highlights of the festival this year.  “Burlesque is an art on its own—it‘s theater, drama, stripping and suggestive dancing, all rolled into one,” explains Jha.