Banker, model, mayor: Transgenders forge a new identity in India - Hindustan Times
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Banker, model, mayor: Transgenders forge a new identity in India

ByShikha Kumar, Nidhi Choksi and Neeta Chhatwani
Apr 27, 2016 08:41 PM IST

They are getting educated, acquiring skills and conquering the workforce. From living on the fringes of society, transgenders across India are now confidently embracing their identity.

First transgender police inspector. First mayor. First college principal. First music band. First taxi service. All in the span of a few months. All in India. The landmark Supreme Court judgment of 2014, which accorded India’s transgenders a third gender status, has offered a new-found liberation for the four-lakh member community. Many are shrugging off years of stigma and shame to break into corporate, creative and bureaucratic fields. They’re refusing to be relegated to the fringes, and taking their first steps towards their rightful place in the world.

6 Pack Band is India’s first transgender music outfit.
6 Pack Band is India’s first transgender music outfit.
Monika Das submitted an affidavit to her employer, stating that she’s a transgender. (A P Dube)
Monika Das submitted an affidavit to her employer, stating that she’s a transgender. (A P Dube)
Rudrani Chhetri was fascinated by how transgenders were discriminated against because of the clothes they wore and wondered why they could not be models. (Nishant Shukla)
Rudrani Chhetri was fascinated by how transgenders were discriminated against because of the clothes they wore and wondered why they could not be models. (Nishant Shukla)
School dropout Madhu Bai Kinnar beat her BJP opponent by over 4,500 votes to win Raigarh’s mayorship. (HT Photo)
School dropout Madhu Bai Kinnar beat her BJP opponent by over 4,500 votes to win Raigarh’s mayorship. (HT Photo)
The members of 6 Pack Band were chosen after multiple rounds of auditions, and were then given voice training workshops .
The members of 6 Pack Band were chosen after multiple rounds of auditions, and were then given voice training workshops .
Sandra Nandeibam has walked the ramp for many local designers in Manipur and was recently the ambassador for Sanagee Likphang, a fashion event that champions the rights of Manipur’s transgenders. (Somba Pukh)
Sandra Nandeibam has walked the ramp for many local designers in Manipur and was recently the ambassador for Sanagee Likphang, a fashion event that champions the rights of Manipur’s transgenders. (Somba Pukh)
Sanjeevani Chavan didn’t think twice when the opportunity of a respectable job, that of a taxi driver, came to her. (Kunal Patil/ Hindustan Times)
Sanjeevani Chavan didn’t think twice when the opportunity of a respectable job, that of a taxi driver, came to her. (Kunal Patil/ Hindustan Times)
Kalki Subramaniam has directed short films and published a collection of Tamil Poems, (Kalki Subramaniam)
Kalki Subramaniam has directed short films and published a collection of Tamil Poems, (Kalki Subramaniam)
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