Self-respect marriage for transsexual couple in TN

Preethisha and Premkumaran, both transsexuals, fell deeply in love with each other and wanted to formalise their relationship by exchanging wedding vows. Being devout Hindus, the couple planned to tie the knot at a temple, but were shooed away by authorities saying their marriage cannot be solemnised.

Shunned by temples, it was the self-respect marriage, a concept conceived by Dravidian legend Periyar E V Ramasamy, that embraced them. Preethisha and Premkumaran are now happily married and their marriage was formally solemnised at the Periyar Suyamariyadhai Thirumana Nilayam in Chennai recently, making it the first wedding between transsexuals in Tamil Nadu.

Self-respect marriages, that shuns all religious rituals, are legal in Tamil Nadu. The concept was first introduced by Periyar and his protg C N Annadurai gave it the necessary legal cover when the DMK attained power dethroning the Congress in 1967.

The marriage between two transsexuals, that too in true rationalist style, could not have come at a better time when the ideals and philosophy of Periyar are sought to be challenged in Tamil Nadu, the state he made his home, though his roots can be traced to present day Karnataka, by desecration of his statues by miscreants.

Just when Preethisha and Premkumaran thought everything was over and their entering into wedlock would be a herculean task, the couple received a call from their lawyer Sujatha. "Our lawyer called and asked us to come to a particular place and it was a pleasant surprise that the venue turned out to be the self-respect marriage centre. We never expected our sorrows to turn into joy in a matter of hours," Preethisha told Deccan Herald.

Her husband Premkumaran adds: "My happiness knew no boundaries the moment we were handed the certificate. I could taste the fruits of the self-respect movement then. And the icing on the cake is that I too belong to Erode (a town in western Tamil Nadu where Periyar lived)."

While Preethisha is an established theatre artist and has played a key role in a period movie, Veeraiyan, Premkumaran had recently resigned his job in a footwear showroom. Though the couple did not inform even their close friends about their marriage, the organisation broke the news on Facebook by posting their wedding pictures.

"The response from friends and well-wishers are heart-warming. Everyone wanted to know why we did not inform them about their marriage. Our hearts have swelled with emotions since then," the couple said.

The self-respect marriage has demonstrated once again that statues of Periyar can be vandalised, but not his ideology or the values that he imparted, said Dravidian ideologue Suba Veerapandian.

"They can break Periyar's statue; but not his ideology and this marriage has reinforced the fact that his teachings are relevant today as they were sixty years ago. It is sad that our enemies are those who still fear Periyar even 45 years after his death and break his statues in the night like cowards," Veerapandian said.