Slice Of Life: ‘Becoming a dancer is my long-time goal’

I was born and brought up in Puducherry. Though I was male by birth, I first felt the need to be a girl when I was studying in Class 6. But I did not discuss this with anyone. When I was a Class 8 student, I wore a saree at home. When my elder brother saw that, he beat me up and told me to not repeat it. But I could not see myself as a boy for long and revealed my identity to the public when I was in Class 10. Though my peer group gave me a lot of problems, teachers at my school were supportive. I was raised by my mother. When she came to know about my change, problems started brewing at the house and I had to leave them and joined a group of transpersons in Puducherry. I became a commercial sex worker after joining them. They did not force me. I did it for the money. But I could not adjust with it and left the city after a month. After coming to Chennai, with the help of an NGO for transpersons, I joined a dance group as I was interested in it since my school days. I had to leave that, too, eventually and then joined a make-up studio, where they gave free classes for transpersons. Though the members of the community have attained heights in the recent past, the public still outcast us and keep a distance from us. In the future, I want to become a dancer, which has been my long-time goal.”