Oh God, not again !! Why this restlessness, anxiety with a motley of evasion, unwanted tension whenever an eunuch comes across- this time in a local train in Mumbai.
Flashback- During every journey to Udaipur in train across Gujarat have I encountered an eunuch coming up asking for money. They are boisterous, loud, dressed in bright gaudy sarees animatedly clapping as though in a clamour procession. They come, make sure that no stone is left unturned to embarrass you- they'd pull your cheeks ,whistle, stroke your hair and make sure you give some breathing space to your pocket else the ignominy could get worse.
But I wonder why do we tend to get helpless when it comes to dealing with them? One shoos away beggars as though they don't exist, one feels compassion towards kids who beg, one feels sorry for the incapacitated who're forced to resort to ask for money to make both ends meet. But why does a eunuch not evoke any such feeling? Why are disgust, grimace, embarrassment, flummox the adjectives which come to my mind on any encounter with them? Am I being too cynical ? One may say so but every experience just reiterates this feeling.
Flipping pages of our history, its clearly elucidated that eunuchs were very important for the kings. They were given the responsibility of the security of the queen and her female friends. On our visit to Golconda fort, I remember the guide clearly telling that men were castrated to make them suitable for this job so that any kind of sexual advances towards the female presence in the palace can be put out of contention. So be it castrated men or transgenders, eunuchs had a lot to offer to the society. But why did it change with time? Their importance was no longer felt and they had to resort to begging, prostitution or dancing. The 21st century eunuch is hardly seen as an active member of the society. They are treated no better than beggars and somehow they haven't tried too hard to shed this image either. They crash on weddings, child births and other auspicious family occasions and demand for money. It is a highly held belief that they've occult powers and their blessings and curse both have tremendous power. So you may call it people succumbing to these beliefs or simply trying to evade the scene that they tend to create, they offer money and bid them good riddance.
Now a eunuch can either be a transgender or a castrated man. This avenue of quick money has made many men perfectly normal but short of money to dress like a eunuch and charge. They beg on traffic signals, trains or gate crash functions to earn this money. Its not the prerogative of eunuchs to beg but somehow the entry of normal men into this business has exacerbated the scenario. In a country where the voting rights to eunuchs was bestowed as late as 1994 and which claims to be the only country where the term still holds pertinence( rest all have switched over to LGBT or castrated men), we ought to do better to provide them an alternative.Its not asking for too much, is it?
Shabnam Mausi led the bandwagon when she became the first eunuch to be elected into a public office. She became an MLA in one of the constituencies in Madhya Pradesh. She tried to work on a lot of grounds; right from the emancipation of women to creating awareness about transgenders and HIV. But even she couldn't mobilize the issue of bringing human right laws for eunuchs in our country. They are still looked down upon as the third gender- "cursed for their sins of the past life" in the words of our antediluvian proponents of the society. They are living a deteriorated life both socially and economically and have to create a parallel world of their own. Maybe this is the reason why they behave the way they do. Maybe this is the reason why they choose to stick to begging and create ignominious situation for people as that may pacify the schadenfreude in them who wants to take the vengeance for this sorry life. One million is a huge number and can be a useful resource if proper programs are implemented. Why can't they have normal day jobs, normal work schedules, normal shopping experiences, normal outings without prying eyes??
SRK once said in an interview his dream role would be to play a eunuch on celluloid. Shabnam Mausi(movie) and Welcome to Sajjanpur did try to talk about transgender rights. Late Nirmal Pandey one an award for the best actress( Yes !!! actress) for his performance in Daayra. Yet cinema, considered a powerful medium, has shied away often to come out in open to support this cause. I've seen no govt. coming out with an agenda on this issue and I've slim hopes in the future as well. But its high time they stand on their feet as well without being myopic just because of the quick buck.
They can no more be reactive and expect things to change, they've to be proactive and earn their respect. I may have just touched the tip of the iceberg, but they have to make sure that they no more remain murky waters.
