Tune in to Priyanka @ 90.4

The Sip of Life Newsmaker of the Week is Priyanka R, a 26 year old Radio Jockey with 90.4 Radio Active, a community Radio Station, in Bangalore. A Transsexual, she was disowned by her parents, at the age of 14.

She not only fended for herself but also earned enough money for the sex change operation. In the process, she gained the confidence to make a decent living for herself, reinstalling the faith of her parents in her and becoming an example for others like her. She hosts Yaaru Ivaru (Who is this person?), a popular programme which is aired every Thursday between 12:30 and 1 pm.

In a free wheeling interview with The Sip of Life columnist, Maitreyee Bhattacharjee Chowdhury, she talks about representing the transsexual (transgender community), her goals in life, the problems faced by those like her and how she has managed to survive this far with dignity. Some excerpts-

What are the problems faced by transgenders in our society?

The main problem is from the common public. They treat us like a different species from another planet and most people are either suspicious or hesitant to talk to us. If we are on a bus, women push us to the men’s seats, while Men push us to the women’s seats. It is as if we have no place amongst normal people.

We also face plenty of problems from the police. It is a common misconception that all transgenders are part of the sex trade and other such activities. While some of it might be true, it is certainly no reason to always be suspicious of transgenders. Many a times people complain of the nuisance that transgenders create in Bangalore traffic signals, how many people know that the dignified looking man sitting in the car often asks such embarrassing questions to the transgenders, which is more often than not reported in the media. Only the other day, me and some of my friends were in Cubbon Park on a holiday, meeting up. We were unnecessarily harassed by the police, who kept asking us what we were doing there and if we were involved in some other activities. It is only when I showed my Identity card that they left us alone.

Local goons are another reason for worry. They often use threat to loot us and force many of us in the sex trade.

In your opinion what are the steps that people should take to make the transgender community feel more comfortable and one with society?

The first step should come from parents. Most parents like mine, either throw out such children out of their homes or try to ‘rectify’ them by beating them up and forcing them in other ways.  As such non-acceptance starts at a very basic level. If parents were supportive of their children, gradually more and more people would accept transgenders and this would help us in becoming a part of the society.  People should remember that there is nothing WRONG with transgenders. This is one of the reasons that so many transgenders are affected by HIV and are considered part of sex rackets.

Many a time I have seen people blame my kind for working in the sex trade and indulging in other such activities. In this regard I remember when I was in Mumbai for a whole year for my sex change operation, I saw the so called normal people in the most compromising situations and yet they are supposed to be normal people. If such is the case, what is the problem when we do it?

Keeping in mind the cost of a sex change operation, is there any institutional help for those like you who want to undergo such an operation? How did you gather money for the operation, especially without help from your parents?

There is no such institutional presence that can help the likes of us to help in financing a sex change operation. But within the community we have certain groups. These groups have a leader each and a certain number of members are allotted to each group. Whatever the earnings of the member, the leader of the group, helps the member save his/her money and rationalize their living so that they can undergo the sex change operation. Like most others, I received no help from my parents initially. I had to do whatever work that came my way. I heard of the community of transgenders and lived with them for sometime. I then worked to save money for the operation.

What do you have to say about the stigma associated with the transgender community?

There are many kinds of stigma associated with our community, while some of it may be true; there are many others who spoil the name of the community by malpractices. (She recollects and incident, that occurred a few days back) – “The other day while I was on the road I saw a transgender, talking rudely to a person. I got angry and confronted her. In the argument I pulled at her hair and suddenly her hair came off! It was a wig and the person was a man dressed like a transgender. When I asked him to explain himself, he said he did this to beg on the streets and earn money and changed his attire every evening at public toilets. I then handed over the man to the police, who thanked me for my services.”

Do you think that reaching out to a community like yours through 90.4 has helped others like you? Do you feel that in recent times, people are more understanding of the transgender community, helping them rehabilitate into normalcy of society?

After joining Radio Active and my show here, I have heard of at least 25 others like me who, are now leading normal lives. Some of them are working in multinational companies as peons or office clerks, etc.  In July 2010 after Bangalore University opened its doors to help transgenders in pursuing higher education, by creating reservation quota of one seat in each of the 60 post-graduate (PG) courses, many of our community have enrolled for higher education.

In this mission, IDF (Initiatives for Development Foundation) Bangalore is helping out in reaching out not only to the transgender community making them more confident but also helping the general public more aware of our problems.

Maitreyee found Priyanka R to be a cheerful smart and confident person. She was proud of the fact that her parent’s are supportive of her now and she can contribute to her family, while helping many others like her. Priyanka has now also got offers to work in the Kannada Television Industry, and will soon be seen in the Television too. 

Maitreyee Bhattacharjee Chowdhury can be contacted at maitreyee@thesipoflife.com