India’s Transgendered Festival and the Crowning of Miss Koovagam

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They have many names—cross dresser, drag queen, eunuch, transsexual, and transvestite, to name a few. They are often misunderstood, hated, and even persecuted all across the modern world, but even more so in the continent of South Asia, where traditional values and religious beliefs are still held above civil equality and liberty for all.

But opposers in India were ultimately unable to prevent this year’s annual transgendered celebration, aka the Koovagam Festival.

The Koovagam Festival is held for fifteen days during the Tamil month of Chitrai (April/May) every year at the Koothandavar temple in the Viluppuram district of Tamil Nadu, India.

The Koothandavar Temple is in fact the only temple in India designated strictly for transgendered people. In particular, the temple caters to eunuchs or hijra, who are men who had their penis, testicles and scrotum purposefully removed during childhood so they could be recruited into a transgendered, all-hijra community.

Although the Koovam Festival is meant exclusively for transgendered hijra, its roots are based entirely on religion. The Telegraph reports that according to the Mahabharata epics of ancient India, Prince Aravan of the Pandavas was chosen for sacrifice to ensure a prompt end to an ongoing war against the Kauravas. As a last wish, he asked that he be married, but nobody would honor his request.

Hindu deity Lord Krishna then appeared as a woman and went on to marry Lord Aravan, after which he was promptly sacrificed. Ergo, a makeshift wedding between two men is held every year the night before the anniversary of Aravan’s sacrifice. The hijra essential believe that “Krishna’s female avatar” was their first ancestor.

“The festival gives the transgender community acceptability in its own eyes. It feels there is a background to its lives that its members are not plain queer,” said Kumaramangalam, the executive director for one of the many not-for-profit organizations responsible for sponsoring the event.

The most anticipated portion of the festival is the Miss Koovagam contest, a transgendered pageant whose winners are determined based on “their personality, HIV/AIDS knowledge, social concern, services delivered to their community” and, of course, talent. Over 70,000 transgendered people congregated in Tamil Nadu this year for the Miss Koovagam contest and the fashion show that followed it.

Sadly, there are an estimated 150,000 transgendered people in India who earn a living by either begging or serving up sex at a brothel. The truth is that most Indians are not too keen on coexisting with these “freaks of nature,” as they sadly perceive them. That’s why this festival is so important; it gives the transgendered eunuchs and hijra a chance to celebrate their lifestyle without any hateration, but with elation instead.

“I have taken part in the festival for the first time and luckily I won Miss Koovagam title. This is very significant and important for me and I am very happy and I pray that more of such events should take place so that we get encouragement,” said Shilpa, this year’s winner.

For a somewhat long but quite insightful look into the life of transgendered peoples in India, take a gander at the documentary below.