Shabnam Mausi-India's first eunuch to become an MLA

New Delhi: Born as a transgender, Shabnam Mausi like most eunuchs (hijras) was discarded by her family. She, like many others of her ilk, was not given an identity. She was just a human, born with a male name (Chandra Prakash). Her family regretted the fact that Chandra Prakash was born in their home.The story of the eunuchs in India is very distressing. They are marginalized in the society. They are made to live in shame. They (hijras) are considered an embarrassment. Most of them are compelled to work in brothels as dancers.Some of them are also forced to beg. At the most, some manage to find a suitable job for themselves in the film or fashion industry.Well, here is the story of a eunuch who fought against all odds and became India's first transgender to be elected as an MLA.Shabnam Mausi, a transgender from Madhya Pradesh, had been elected an MLA during Congress rule from Sohagpur constituency in 1998 and retained her constituency till 2003. Her story is an inspirational one.Shabnam Mausi Bano was born into a Brahmin family. Her father was a superintendent of Police. Her family handed her over to the transgender community right after birth.Shabnam Mausi as a child knew that she would have a tough life ahead. She knew she was different from most other people. But at that point of time she didn't comprehend the difference. As a child, she often wondered why her parents abandoned her.Shabnam Mausi was once quoted saying, "I have grown up being called a hijra. That word was like a thorn, which kept piercing me.”As she grew up, she decided not to be a victim of circumstances. She was shunned away from the society for no fault of her own. But she decided to fight back. She would not give up till she breathes her last.So rather than begging or taking up any odd job she decided to enter the film industry and fortunately she got bit roles in films like Amar Akbar Anthony, Kunwara Baap and Janata Ka Hawaldar. She is also a trained classical dancer.Shabnam was always bitter about the way transgenders were mistreated by people. She always felt that Indian government hadn't done anything for them. She observed that they worked for ST/SCs and OBCs but ignored eunuchs. In fact eunuchs (hijras) were allowed to exercise their right to vote in 1994 in India – over forty years after independence. Hence, Shabnam Mausi involved herself in a number of social activities. She worked for the welfare of her people and also socialized with the masses. Eventually in 1998 she decided to contest elections as an independent candidate. She felt that the only way to get rid of social evils that existed in the society was to enter the battlefield of politics.Shabnam contested from Sohagpur constituency in district Shahdol in Madhya Pradesh. The other candidates could have taken her lightly. But her jolly nature and compassion for righteousness had conquered thousands of hearts.Her agenda during election campaigns included fighting corruption, unemployment, poverty, and hunger in her constituency. She also advocated against discrimination meted out to ‘hijras'. She even tried to raise awareness on HIV/AIDS.Despite being an illiterate she can speak in 12 different languages.Her effort, courage and right intention was given recognition and she won the election thereby becoming the first transgender to have achieved that feat. The entire eunuch community of Madhya Pradesh celebrated her victory.Shabnam declared her victory as a reaction against the apathy of leaders and politicians towards people's grievances of the people.In a humorous mood she had said, "The political scenario in MP is bad. Ministers do not help the society at all. So people thought "Nar ko dekh liya, nari ko dekh liya, ab hijre ko dekh lenge (We have seen men and women, now let's see what a eunuch can do).”Shabnam Mausi took her oath as Member of Legislative Assembly in Hindi and as she spoke other members in the Assembly applauded in appreciation. Her victory was not hers alone. It was the victory of humanity. It was message for those heavy headed people fail to appreciate God's creation. It was a reprimand to those who treat transgenders as aliens.Shabnam Mausi again contested Assembly elections in 2012 as a candidate of Rashtriya Viklang Party (RVP). This time she contested from Kanpur Uttar Pradesh. She campaigned on foot and sang self composed songs like 'Shabnam Mausi aayi hain nayi roshni layi hain.'She would also chant, "Hum chahe jaise bhi hain par un choron se to acche hain (I am eunuch, but I am better than those corrupt politicians.”She was defeated by BJP's Raghunandan Singh Bhadauria.As an MLA, Shabnam Mausi worked hard for her people. Shabnam Mausi motivated other eunuchs to take up politics too. She inspired and set the path for them to do away with their traditional characters as dancers, beggars and prostitutes. Shabnam Mausi is a fiction feature film that revolves around the real life character of Shabnam. Her character has been played by Ashutosh Rana. This movie was not a commercial success and was even criticized for being too crass. It failed to generate compassion for transgenders and was not even considered inspiring. Yet it was appreciated for introducing a new subject to Indian film industry. The director's effort to highlight the plight of hijras was appreciated. More than anything else, Ashutosh Rana's performance as Shabnam Mausi was well acclaimed.Ashutsoh sought Shabnam's blessings before starting off with the movie. When Shabnam Mausi learnt that a movie was being made on her, she was ecstaticShe said, “I feel good that a film is being made on me," adds Shabnam. "People have always looked down on eunuchs. We have never got sympathy. If my story benefits even one eunuch, I will be very happy. I have watched Ashutosh Rana's Sangharsh. He is a good actor, very original and realistic. I like him”.Shabnam Mausi is hailed as a transgender who overcame prejudice to launch a successful career in politics. Norman Vincent had once said – “Change your thoughts and you change your world”.Shabnam felt hurt when she was insulted but she also knows that despite her being different from the majority of the world, she can be herself and have faith in her abilities. She was confident of her strength and that is what kept her going. Shabnam Mausi is trying to make this world a better place to live. Her effort is to bring harmony and end the evils of discrimination in India.Following her path, a group of hijras in MP decided to form their own party called “Jeeti Jitayi Politics (JJP)” in 2003.Shabnam Mausi is no longer involved in active politics yet she continues her drive to make India HIV/AIDS free. She works with gender activists and NGO."We brothers and sisters often face stigma and discrimination because of our sexual orientation. Talking openly about AIDS helps us understand each other!" - Shabnam MausiShabnam's life story has inspired people of her kind, and even filmmakers like Yogesh Bharadwaj who made a film on her entitled ‘Shabnam Mausi.' This film was released in 2005.