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Bigudi Club
Queer nightclub and bar in Istanbul, Turkey From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Bigudi Club (Turkish: Bigudi Kulübü) is a lesbian and queer nightclub and bar located at Mis Sokak No. 5 in the Beyoğlu area of Istanbul, Turkey.[1][2] It is the first lesbian-exclusive nightclub in the country of Turkey, established December 2006.[3][4] Around 2017, they redefined the space as a queer bar, not exclusively for women.
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"I [wanted] to create something for only women because we have no space in Turkey. We have no space in Istanbul"
– Adar Bozbay, owner of Bigudi[5]
In Turkey, historically lesbianism has not been encouraged or supported, this is particularly true within Turkish psychiatry.[4] In the 1990s, lesbian organizations in Turkey were established to provide community support, including Sappho's Girls (Turkish: Sappho'nun Kızları) and The Sisters of Venus (Turkish: Venüs'ün Kızkardeşleri).[4]
Bigudi Club opened in December 2006 by Adar Bozbay and was the first exclusively lesbian venue in the county.[3][5] It was previously located a 5 İstiklal Caddesi in Şehit Muhtar, Beyoğlu, Istanbul.[3] It is now at Mis Sokak No. 5 near the former location, and is situated on a terrace above an apartment building.[6][7] Until 2016, the Bigudi Club was the only queer club for women in Turkey, and they struggled with harassment by police.[5] Around 2017, the nightclub decided to open up to the larger queer community, not exclusively lesbian.[5]
In March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, the nightclub temporarily closed and was uncertain about the future.[5] During this time of closure, Adar Bozbay started working in filmmaking and created the documentary film Incomplete Sentences (2021) (Turkish: Bitmemiş Cümleler), about the Turkish author and human rights activist Aslı Erdoğan.[8][9][10]
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