Our field trip today to Pondichéri University School of Performing Arts hooked us up with Ms. Sugantha Laskshmi – a colleague of Margaret's from the International Women Playrights Conference in Mumbai Oct09.
Sugantha is researching theatre as an advocacy and education tool in the transgendered community in India. That population is significant – 300,000 in Tamil Nadu alone. Like much of Indian society their lives are significantly complicated by mythology ... Lord Krishna apparently did the trans thing from time to time.
One of the Mahabharata legends recounts how the warrior Aravan son of Arjuna asked to get married and enjoy a night of conjugal bliss before being sacrificed by the Pandavas for victory in the war of Kurukshetra. No fathers would come forward to offer up a future widow so Krishna assumed the enchanting form of Mohini to become Aravan’s bride for a night. In April 2009 more than 100,000 transgendered people from all over India gathered near Pondi at Kooyagam for the annual re-enactment of the wedding night.
And fashion show ...
Despite the Krishna endorsement most transgendered Indians are highly marginalized and survive on begging or sex work. In this land where men are expected to marry the alternatives are not pleasant. To its credit the government of Tamil Nadu has recently passed sweeping legislation to improve transgendered lives – including creating a special category on ration cards.
