Using Algebra to fight transphobia

You've heard them being parodied in the Kamla ka hamla radio spot. Bollywood mostly sticks to regressive Tayyeb-Ali-Pyaar-Ka-Dushman stereotypes or reinvents worse ones like in Dostana. Television, when it doesn't make them characters from the zenana in garish, historical costume dramas, is happy to use them for often-outright-offensive comedy. Think Gutthi/Palak from Comedy Nights with Kapil.

Now in a first, a transgender (TG) lead — yes, lead! — has appeared in an ad for an Indian telecom company. To its credit, the half-minuter by agency Lowe Lintas, which promotes the telecom company's internet service-enabled e-learning platform, leaves all the gaggle of transphobic, camp, loud, in-your-face stereotypes from the cis-gendered world, far behind.

Here, unmindful of voices which mock her with, "You want to study?" "Don't you know we're not running dance classes? Get out!" the trans-woman, in a neatly draped cotton sari, bindi-with-a-hint-of-bling firmly in place, simply questions with dignity, why she's unacceptable in both a girls' or boys' school. The narrative shows her e-learn and become an Algebra expert whom kids from the neighbourhood flock to learn from.

Those who want to, can, of course, nit-pick. After all, how many TGs have you seen giving math tuitions? Worse, how many, of 'us' would agree to send our children knowingly to one? Some call the plot a cop-out because, instead of taking on exclusion head-on, the lead character works her way around it.

Yet, none can take away from the fact that this is a first baby-step in the right direction. Away from contemptuous and fearful exclusion, from a sub-human existence where prostitution helps one survive and from being boxed into exploitative, socio-religious practices.

"In an ideal world, we'd like to see a TG character as a child in school, as a lawyer, an academic and a lot more. Integrated as an everyday character," TG activist Gauri Sawant, who heads the trans-women's network Sakhi Char Choughi told me. "If using the cell-phone really solved our problems, why would so many TGs get forced into unprotected sex for money?"

Sawant along with Ernest Noronha (Meera), was the first to file a PIL, which led to the landmark Supreme Court judgement on April 15th, last year, which gave TGs the 'third gender' identity. In fact, soon after the ruling, the Social Justice & Empowerment Ministry had announced the first ever TV and print ads on the rights and problems of TGs. A year later, the announcement has remained just that.

Needless to say, we need several such ideas to educate and propagate equality-based integration. And one can think of no one more in urgent need of this than the Samajwadi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Visambar Prasad Nishad. In a debate on TGs on Friday, he actually asked: "Do you know why you don't see hijras in hospital? It's because of their clapping that they get automatically cured by acupuncture (he pronounced it AQUApuncture)."

Other MPs joined in the chorus, claiming they never fall sick because they are always busy with "bhajan and namaz."

Gay rights activist Ashok Row Kavi, who pioneered championing the rights of those with marginalised sexual orientations, gender alignments and identities, slapped his forehead in disgust. "These MPs need to understand that HIV prevalence among hijras/TGs is over 10 per cent. In cities such as Mumbai, it crosses 20 per cent thanks to them being heavily into prostitution. They can't do bhajan-namaz 24x7on empty stomachs, and are dying like flies."

The ear-worm jingle for the same company comes to mind: No ullu banaoing... both the TGs and us!