A picture of turmoil for transgenders
Harassed, oppressed, homeless: Members of the hijra community, who were evicted from their homes in Dasarahalli, Bangalore, in 2008. — File Photo
They beg at traffic junctions, bus-stops and other public spaces. And seem to dress ‘contradictory' to their apparent sex. But why are hijras and transgenders like that? And how do their families, society and the state respond?
Bangalore-based filmmaker Gopal Menon attempts to answer these questions through Let the Butterflies Fly , a poignant and insightful Kannada film (with English subtitles) documenting how the Bangalore police and the medical establishment harass hijras.
The moving narrative portrays some infamous instances of police mistreating transgenders and their supporters.
In October 2008, the Girinagar police arrested and lathi-charged five hijras for begging, and falsely accused them of extortion. Further, the Assistant Commissioner of Police and Inspector at the nearby Banashankari Police Station detained Dilfaraz, Madesh and others from the crisis response team of Sangama (an NGO working for sexuality minorities, sex workers and those affected by HIV), six civil liberty campaigners and 31 human rights defenders protesting against the issue.
And, in early November 2008, the Amrutahalli police pressurised homeowners in Dasarahalli to evict their transgender tenants. A local resident stated on camera, “The hijras lived here peacefully like most other neighbours. Sadly, the police rendered them homeless.”
Unsurprisingly, some leading news channels and national dailies sensationalised the happenings, hurting the transgenders further.
Shilpa's story
Continuing to target sexuality minorities, the Bangalore police arrested Shilpa, a hijra, in November 2008 using an old missing complaint from her family. Born as a boy, Shilpa preferred women's clothes and performing household activities. Owing to nagging parents, she left home, lived with other hijras and underwent sex reassignment surgery in early 2008.
But during her detention, the police abused Shilpa verbally and physically and forced doctors at Apollo Hospital to reconstruct her penis, traumatising and inconveniencing her forever. Further, the police arrested her friends Mangala and Baby, falsely accusing them of compelling the ‘boy' to undergo castration.
“Mangala and Baby were wrongly imprisoned for two years. The police and medics deserve punishment for their unlawful actions in this case,” said a noted human rights lawyer B.T. Venkatesh, in the film.
He succeeded in having the duo released recently. Justice was “too little, too late”, said Manohar Elavarthi, Sangama's cofounder towards the end of the documentary.
Interspersed with renditions by LGBT activist and singer Sumathi Murthy, the film also highlights how transgenders feel different right from childhood and are often denied education, voter id's and ration cards.
Releasing the film at Bangalore's Bharati Vidya Bhavan, Kannada actor Prema told the transgender community present, “You are fascinating. I admire your courage and support your struggles.” Will this be enough to generate empathy for gender minorities?
Pushpa Achanta
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