Transwomen group’s Bharatanatyam debut at Ernakulam Siva temple leaves footprints in history

Kochi: Former President Ram Nath Kovind termed it a step towards inclusivity. There were indeed many steps, powerful enough to leave a mark in history, though. Yet another chapter was added to the chronicles of Kerala’s transgender community’s pursuit of visibility when seven transwomen performed Bharatanatyam at the famed Siva Temple, Ernakulam on Sunday evening.
It is the first time a troupe of transwomen debuted in classical dance at a temple event in the state.

Daya Gayathri, Karthika Ratheesh, Sruthi Sithara, Shreya Divakaran, Mythili Nandakumar, Sandhya Ajith and Sangeetha – all from different parts of Kerala were trained at Sathyasai Free Transgender Academy, Kochi as part of an initiative of Sri Sathya sai Orphanage Trust, Kerala, supported by a corporate social responsibility programme by the Cochin Shipyard Ltd. Sathya Sai Trust has dance academies for transgenders in Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Chennai.

What made the event special was the presence of Former President Ram Nath Kovind who inaugurated the programme and sat through it. In his inaugural address, Kovind said transgender community was an important section and he wanted to support their cause. He said the event was a step towards inclusivity and social acceptance.

The dancers were trained in Bharatanatyam by Sanjana Chandran, a transwoman who has already established her identity as a classical dancer. She is also known for her performance in Mohanlal-starrer ‘Malaikottai Vaaliban’.

Sanjana said there are 16 students in her class and among them are those who were trained in dance in childhood and a few who could not afford to enrol in a dance school earlier. “Also, there are families who are reluctant to send boys to learn classical dance fearing they would turn feminine. In our class, there are a few who were denied the opportunity due to this reason,” she said.

Sanjana said though she has been getting opportunities to perform in temples due to the recognitions she has already received, people are usually reluctant to offer opportunity to her fellow community members during temple events. She said she hopes the banner of the Sathya Sai Trust would help the group get venues in more temples.

Sanjana said she and her students were proud of the presence of the former president at the debut performance. “Even when we invite celebrities to such events, they charge huge amounts and often leave midway during the performances. But the former president sat throughout the programme. It’s a huge achievement for us,” she said.

Sruthi, one of the performers who debuted, said she was happy that she could realise a long-pending dream with the event. Hailing from Vaikom and settled in Ernakulam, Sruthi is an Mcom student. She said though she had attended dance classes when she was in school, she had to discontinue it. “It was my longterm dream to perform Bharatanatyam and I’m so happy that I could do my debut performance at the Ernakulathappan temple,” she said.

K N Anandkumar, the founder of the Sathya Sai trust, said the dance academy for transpeople was established three years ago with the aim to help the marginalized community with livelihood opportunities.