Trans history finds roots in Tamil lit

CHENNAI:In Priya Babu’s work, transwomen take centre stage. She is a scriptwriter, filmmaker, a researcher, and a transwoman based in Madurai, with a keen interest in interpreting histories of her community. Anyone familiar with her work would know that it shakes prejudices as we learn of transpersons’ lives in all fronts — from their duties as the queen’s apprentice during the Chola period, to their depiction in Bhakti literature. In an interview with CE, she talks about her upcoming film and its drive to show the stark presence of transgenders’ lives in Tamil history.

The idea for this documentary came when her previous film could not fully incorporate her research. “It was on transgender folk art in Tamil Nadu, which released in 2005. I had travelled across the state and collected a lot of information about the depiction of trans lives in Tholkapiam, Jeevakasintamani, Silapathikaram, and Bhakti literature,” she shares.

For about eight years after that, she collected books, and sought help from various centres including National Folklore Support Centre, Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department, Tanjavur Archaeology Department, Ramanathapuram Aranmanai, and centres in other parts of south Tamil Nadu.She shares that her inquisitiveness was new to the people she met, as she asked ‘What were transgender relationships like in the confines of a place?’ ‘What circles did they move in?’ ‘What positions of power did they hold?’ and more importantly, for her film, ‘How could she picturise these histories from the past?’

“I thought docu-drama would be more interesting, so we can explore the representation of their lives better. There are aranmanai scenes from Chola and Chera periods that have transpersons in decision-making positions,” she explains, adding that it is fully based on evidence.Most of the pre-production work for the docu-drama is complete, there’s a lot left to be done. She says that financial support has been
minimal so far, and most of it is volunteer driven. “Production costs are going to be high, and while the technical team is almost in place, we are yet to do a recce and auditions, and figure out the logistics,” she adds. To garner more support, a few months back, Priya launched an app called Idaiyinam. It informs people about the film, and ways to offer support to the team.

As she prepares for the poster release and shooting scheduled to start mid-April, she admits there have been many challenges. But being able to reclaim transgender histories, that was never erased in the first place, is the underlying intention of her work. “Mainstreaming our histories, and making others sensitive to our lives, is what keeps my work happy and going,” she shares.