CHENNAI: Transgenders are stereotyped either as beggars or sex workers, I want to change that perception, says 24-year-old Ashwini Bose.
A transgender from TN, Ashwini, who settled down in Singapore in 2012, came to the city on Friday to hold a feast for homeless children at a shelter in Saidapet.
“This stereotype must be broken. I’m an example of a transgender who was not only supported by the family, but also managed to find work and become successful in life. We don’t only demand, we can also give,” says Ashwini, who did her diploma in Computer Science from the Central Polytechnic in Taramani. She spent the entire day with the children at Karunai Illam with her adopted grandmother Selvi, who is also a transgender.
Friday was Selvi’s birthday and every year she would do some kind of social work. This year, however, Ashwini convinced Selvi to fly down to Chennai and spend time with the homeless children.
“She was born and brought up in Singapore. In that country, there is no discrimination and we are not categorised as transgenders. We are just females. I met her three years ago and she has supported me ever since,” Ashwini says of Selvi.
Ashwini plans to conduct similar such feasts for homeless children across TN, hoping that it would help change the image of transgenders. “The sad fact is that families have begun to accept transgenders, but society still mocks and denigrates us,” she says.