Camera: Gurvinder Singh
Video Editor: Rahul Sanpui
Producer: Abhishek Ranjan
Anuradha Sarkar has pinned her hopes on the Prakriti dance academy. Anuradha, in her 20s, is not any ordinary girl taking up training. She belongs to the transgender community, which still lives on the fringes of Indian society.
Every Tuesday evening, she takes a metro to her dance school in Elgin road in South Kolkata.
Prakriti dance academy is exclusively for the transgender community, imparting free classical dance lessons to the community members. It was inaugurated on 26 June 2018.
I have faced a lot. My parents are still reluctant to accept me. At the tender age of 10, when my friends used to go to school, I was sent to Bihar to earn money from Badhai (auspicious inaugural occasions like childbirth and weddings), but the person who took me there cheated me and forced into launda dance (trans woman dancing). The onlookers threw pieces of broken glasses and nails and a transgender has to dance over them without caring about any injury. People there neither cared about us nor considered us human beings.Anuradha Sarkar
She stayed in Bihar for around four years, before returning to Kolkata five years ago. There, she got in touch with Ranjita Sinha, a trans woman and founder of the dance academy who also runs Association of Transgender/Hijra in Bengal (ATHB), a non-profit. Since then, she has been with ATHB.
Even Alia Sheikh (23), who had been a sex worker, wants to start a new life, beginning at the academy.
I got virtually no support from my parents and had to enter the obnoxious trade to fulfill my needs. I did the flesh trade and also continued my education. I have completed my graduation in psychology. I want to be a psychologist and also a dancer as I think the latter has a future. The academy is a good opportunity because people laugh at us and pass vulgar comments when members of our community go to other training centres.Alia Sheikh, Transgender Women
Anuradha’s life changed after she came in touch with Ranjita Sinha, a transgender woman herself, and founder of the dance academy. Ranjita also runs the ATHB.
Alokananda Roy, a famous danseuse, is a mentor at Prakriti.
I want to show to the world that they are in no way different from us. They have equal capabilities to do whatever others can do. We are just providing them with a platform to excel and achieve their dreams. They live in turmoil because of being rejected by their families. We want them to perform on stage in front of larger audience so that the society can change their perception about them.Aloknanda Roy
In 2015, the West Bengal government had formed a Transgender Development Board to look into the issues faced by the community and solve them. But most of the community members allege that nothing visible has been done.
Ranjita Sinha, who is also a board member, says that the state government should take concrete steps to look into the issues faced by the community.
We are taking it up as a pilot project and aim to open similar academies across the country in the future where a transgender can hone their skills. We are also aiming to collaborate with different agencies to provide them with a suitable platform to display their skills. The development board should act swiftly in solving our problems.Ranjita Sinha
West Bengal’s Minister of Women and Child development, Shashi Panja, who is the chairperson of the board, however, refuted allegations of non-performance.
We have to face several challenges to solve their issues. The board has done a commendable job and its work should be appreciated rather than being criticised.Shashi Panja, Minister of Women and Child Development
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)