Transgenders face more mental and physical violence, as well as social stigma and discrimination, than any other community. As a result, most of them conceal their gender reality and hesitate going out for work. And if they do, they are paid lower wages and discriminated against. But the situation is changing. Today, they occupy many senior positions in respectable jobs.
When Simran Arora “came out”, the first question that was raised by her shocked family is “What will you do? Are you also going to beg?”. Now 38, the first transgender employee of the central government is a consultant at the National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation under Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
Shreya Singh Dalal was the marketing and PR manager of the Lalit Suri Group till recently. Born into a middle-class Calcutta family as a boy, she began accepting her gender reality while she was in Class VII. A big reason behind her success is Gurgaon-based Reena Rai. Since the time Dalal lost her parents, Rai has stood behind her, even doing kanya daan when Dalal recently got married.
Former Miss Transqueen India Vippi is a make-up artist at a beauty parlour. She says she began noticing the change in her when she was around 10 years old. She gave up school after Class X, but realised she didn’t want to become a kinnar when she encountered some on the streets. She says, “I faced many difficulties, but I now work at a respectful place. If I can succeed, why can’t others like me? We transgenders are not only meant for begging or sex work.”
The current Miss Transqueen India, Shaine Soni, says people wanted her to grow up as a boy, but she wanted to be like her mother. At the age of 17, she left her house, became a fashion designer. A top 15 placement in the TV reality show Let’s Design S2 gave her the opportunity to work in Hong Kong. She will now represent India in Miss Trans International.
The umbilical cord running through all of these people is Reena Rai, known as Trans-Mom. Herself a cisgender, she is the founder-director of Miss Transqueen India, and helps other transgender people achieve their dreams.
(This appeared in the print edition as "Pictures of Confidence")
Text & Photos by Suresh K. Pandey
