Support My Efforts:

This past week on ITHU Rose Neram, (KALAIGNAR TV EVERY SAT 9:30 PM) there was discussion on ghosts. The location of this shoot was an abandoned, disfigured house complex away from Chennai. In this dark, deserted place, during the discussion one of the guys says he does not believe that ghosts exist. So Rose challenges him to go into the dark areas of the place to find one of the four pots that are said to be hidden somewhere. Will the guy take the challenge? Will he come back safely? Watch for nerve biting moments on Ithu Rose Neram this upcoming week.

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Everyone is afraid of ghosts, devils, evil, pei, pisaasu etc,
Or is everyone?
We want to test whether this fear is in everyone. We are currently inviting men and women of all ages to be our challenge contestant. We will test how far you can go in your ability to be without fear before dangerous, scary pei, pisasu, ghoss, devils and those kinds of scary things. Interested? Write to support@roseneram.com or call 044-24747819 in India or contact Jerry at this forum or visit www.roseneram.com . Wahterver, however, prove that you are not afraid and we will show how fearless you are to the Tamil world on our show Ithu Rose Neram. Act fast, other challegees are also interested.

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You think there is no ghost, devli or evil? Would you be daring enough to show your courage on TV? We are looking for you. Ithu Rose Neram is a reality talkshow in Tamil and we are seeking the most courageous men and women to take part in a reality challenge show that tests their fearlessness. We will be shooting in a graveyard. Game for it? Write immediately to support@roseneram.com or call 044-24747819.

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Last week on Ithu Rose Neram, three bold women spoke openly about how men approach the in wrong ways in love and also came out about how they like to be approached by men in love. They shared a lot of things about what men can do and can not do. The audience on the show were all young men and they listened to the women's advice and complaints.

This week, August 8, a transgender girl's perspective of how men misbehave in love transgenders, how they should approach and how not to approach a transgender girl are discussed by Kalki, a well-educated transgender girl from Coimbatore.

After learning about what these girls expect or respect in the approach of a man, the men are then put to a test by approaching these girls in the name of love. The girls will assess their approach skills and provide marks. The highest scoring guy wins the Kaadhal Mannan title. Who wins the title? What do the girls say? What did the transgender girl say about men and their love for a transgender girl? Watch on Ithu Rose Neram Kalaignar TV Saturday 930pm

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Ithu Rose Neram is a brand new magaine talkshow airing every Saturday 9:30pm. The talkshow has a series of ultimate reality contests. One of them is a model hunt across Tamil Nadu. For the opening episode on this model hunt, we need three male and three female budding models or appropriate modeling aspirants. We launch them on the show with a fabulous ramp walk, well choreographed. We provide the make up, hair styling and we also give professional photographs taken on location. On the show, after the ramp walk, Rose will ask the models various questions about their interests, ambitions, efforts, frustrations and the like about modeling and their modeling dreams. So, on this show, the six models get maximum exposure and may land great opportunities, or they may win in our own subsequent modeling contest. This once-in-a-life-time opportunity comes very rarey. We only need serious modeling aspirants or budding models for this role.

We charge a fee (15 thousand for boys, 20 thousand for girls) to cover the costs of providing location-based photographs, hair style, makeup and the ramp walk. You can get maximum media exposure even before entering the modeling industry. The show will be watched by a lot of movie makers and people in the modeling and entertainmnet industry, so you may land a job of your dreams. Following this, the six models can take part in the modeling contest, if they wish. If you are interested, please immediately email support@roseneram.com . We must confirm the serious models by 26th July, 2009. So hurry up!!!!.

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Hi all,
Lots of youngsters want to become movie directors. But then it's not easy to become one. Hundreds of thousands of people move to Chennai from their small villages and towns in their goals to become movie directors, but very few actually come out successful. What happens to the hordes of others? Find out about the trials and tribulations one has to undergo in Chennai to become movie directors. Tonight 9:30 pm Kalaignar TVon Ithu Rose Neram.

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Just got the news that section 377 is repealed i am very happy. i am jumping up and down

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Hi foliks,
My new show titled Ithu Rose Neram is a whole new magazine talkshow and it will be on air from July 4,2009 on Kalaignar TV. The first episode is on obesity where people who are fat or obese speak about the social and health consequences and then take a pledge to slim down in two months based on a tailor-made slimming programme desgined by me in cosultation with experts. The two-month programme will be followed up and then they will be brought back to the show to see their results.Do not miss it. More hot and interesting topics inlude coming your way.

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Hi foliks,
The gay pride parade in Chennai was a fabulous event. I jined in half way through the march and it was an explosion of emoitons, voices and energy aimed at placing LGBT existence at the peak of attention for Chennaiites. The whole march and gathering was very involving. The event was a success and i enjoyed immensely taking part in it.

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Hi Folks, The Chennai Pride Parade today got its name. It's officially Chennai Vaanavil Ula (Chennai Rainbow March) in Tamil. Vaanavil Ula as a title was suggested by me and Chennai was added to it by a motion passed by the rest of the meeting participants today. It's coming June 28.

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Readers,
Usually when i write any item in my blog, i just type what i feel and then immediately post it without checking for errors. Later as i read my posts, i usually come across errors in spelling of many words. Many readers are likely thinking that Rose has bad English writing skills. The truth is that it's the speed of typing when i am almost sleeping when i put these blog posts that causes such errors. I am not terribly bad in written English.

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June is celebrated as Gay Pride month in much of the world to celebrate and remember the sacrifices and revolution created by the brave men, women and transsexuals at the Stonewall revolution that inspired the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender rights movements across the world

June Pride Events in Chennai

Celebrate Pride Month

For the first time in history, Chennai will be in PINK this June with Pride events celebrated throughout the city. Please join us to commemorate the Stonewall riot 40 years ago, which ignited the fight for civil rights by lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender/transsexuals (LGBT) around the world. Chennai will host a series of events:

June 5th

Event Description: “Amour”, a multimedia Bharata Nathyam dance performance by Shanmugha Sundaram, sponsored by Alliance Francaise of Madras + SAATHI
When:
Friday, June 5
6:30 pm –
What: A unique, multi-media Bharata Nathyam dance performance titled - ‘Amour’ - by Shanmugha Sundaram. ‘Amour’ is an ode to the famous French sculptor and painter Auguste Rodin to celebrate the right of all people to express their love regardless of sexual orientation or gender.
Where:
Alliance Francaise Auditorium
No. 24, College Road
Chennai
www.af-madras.org
Ticket Cost: Entrance Free

June 20th

Event Description: Be educated and entertained at the launch of Human Rights Watch report with panel discussion and cultural performances by Sahadoran and LesBits.
When:
Saturday, June 20
6:00 pm –
What:
Launch of This Alien Legacy: The Origins of "Sodomy" Laws in British Colonialism, by the Human Rights Watch with a panel discussion and cultural performances by Sahadoran and LesBits.
Where:
"Spaces"
No 1, Elliots Beach Road
Besant Nagar
Chennai
Ticket Cost: Entrance Free

June 22nd

Event Description: Come watch Oscar-winning movie ‘Milk’. The inaugural address will be delivered by the US Consular Section Chief, Bryan Dalton, and Ms. Rose, TV celebrity & transgender activist, will be the Chief Guest. Dress in party wear for Oscar Night Premier!
When:
Monday June 22nd
6:30 pm – 8:30
What:
Screening of ‘Milk’; Sean Penn bagged the Oscar for Best Actor.
Where:
South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce Auditorium
Mahatma Gandhi Salai
Thousand Lights
Chennai
www.close2rose.com
www.chennaiusconsulate.gov
Ticket Cost: Entrance Free

June 28th - Gay Pride March (permission pending)

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Dear all,
I know it's been a very long time since i wrote on here for you to read about my life and current activities. Sorry about that. I have been on an emotional rollercoaster ride but mostly on the ebb of it. Bear with me and i love you all. Also, pls pardon me for not answer your individual messages from the site. I do writ eback to a few messages depending upon how the message impresses me and how special it is and how much it grabs my attention. Sorry, this is because i am unable to write back on all the messages that come in.

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Dear all,
The US consulate in Chennai is putting up a festival featuring Oscar winning movies. The launch of the event is on June 22, 2009 and i have been invitied as the Guest of Honor for the launch and first day of screening. I am excited about this. Also, i am more excited because they are starting the festival with the screening ot the move Milk, an inspirational film about the life of US's first openly gay politician. June also happens to be Gay pride month around the world. So i am very honored to be the Guest of honor for this event.

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Dear all,
I am quite occupied with me new TV show project titled 'Ithu Rose Neram' soon to be aired on Kalaignar TV. As i am the Creative Head and the producer of the show, i am quite excited and putting toegether some nice pieces to come up with a great show. As always, i will be happy t get your support for this show as well. Watch out for this one.

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Dear all,
National Geographic TV is producing a show called What is Gender? as a part of their Explorer series. A team from the US had flown to Chennai and spent four days with me covering my current life and an interview of my past life. The show would be broadcast around the world on NatGeo TV in the next few months. So watch out for it

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Hello dear ones,
The series Ippadikku Rose has ended on Star Vijay tv. It has been a great entry for me into the media and i have learned a lot over the time doing the show the past year. The series had about 50 episodes.

To all my fans, please wait a while for me to come back with greater entertainment for you.

I will announce my next ventures soon on this blog.

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Hello folks
I am busy learning movie direction from 2007's best director award winner Vetrimaran on the film titled Aadugalam, starring Dhanush and Trisha. The experience is fantastic. I am learning a lot. I am very busy here, so i may be unable to respond to your mails. Please bear with me.

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Hey darlings,
Here is wishing you a great year full of peace and growth in terms of personal and inner potential and for achieving the intricate and real goals of life rather than superficial monetary and human-rank based growth.

I celebrated my New Year rather differently this time by going out into the public covered up. I hid my face in a monkey cap which and wore very simple plain clothing. I was not found out while i was enjoying my New Year with my frined out on the streets of Chennai and the popular beaches. It was great.

Pongal is coming up, i also feel that the year has come with a lot of stimulus for me to work harder or should i say with more focus. I am happy that the days of wasting time are somewhat gone and that i am more focussed now.

A host of things are coming up to kee me busy and i am happy about that as well.

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The world has seen numerous dreadful diseases so far. Many of those dieases are now under human control thanks to human intelligence and hard work. Now, though, HIV is quite a threat that medical scientists are trying very hard to tackle. December 1 is remmebered as World AIDS day. Let us all take the pledge to stay informed about how HIV spreas and ensure we act responsibly to ensure this threat is gradually removed from the face of the earth.

Be aware that HIV spreads by:
1. Unprotected sex (homosexual & heterosexual), so use a condom (properly) when you have sex with others, 2. Get more information about how HIV spreads and be thoroughly informed about it. Visit: http://www.aidonaids.com/forpatients/how-does-hiv-spread.htm

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I have been watching the events as they unfolded in Mumbai during the last week of November in an attempt to terrorize, anger and thus try to drag India to a war with Pakistan by the terrorists.

It seems evident that the terrorsits do not like a peaceful relationship between India and Pakistan, given that they committed such ruthless acts in the light of the Pakistan government stating they would not use their nuclear arms first and also their willingness for peace talks in resolving the friction with India. It is very clear that the terorsts do not want peace and so they have provoked India and the world community by targeting India's commercial capital's heritage sites. Such a provocation would cause mistrust with Pakistan and likely lead to a confrontation betwen India and Pakistan, which is exactly what the rogues want.

I believe it is vital for the Indian government to wake up to the reality of terrorism and politicians to wake up to the reality that they can not ignore this threat and continue to pacify their vote banks in an attempt to continue to stay in power. This is so because the terroristic threat is a real threat to their lives and their families' lives as well as they could also be killed in the process by the enemies. So, they have to wake up to this reality as without life, they will be unable to enjoy the positions of power that they are trying to reatain by being oblivious to criminal threats because of lack of willingness to lose certain vote banks.

As a person myself watching violence and killing in the name of religions, i believe the world should be free of dividing factors such as religions, race, caste, etc, based on which violence is being perpetuated by selfish leaders using innocent young men and women as terrorists for their greed.

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I almost fell down unconsciously as i watched the gruesome events on TV of the attack with hard tools and stones of young law students in Chennai recently. I wept within my heart seeing the condition of human beings. What's worse is the careless passer-by-like attitude of the police and that the attacks happended within the premises of the Law College, where students study to try to uphold the law in the future in this country. It's very clearly a tactic used by polictical leaders for their own political gains caring not the least for the lives of innocent students that have hopes for the future and their parents full of dreams about their sons. This incident opens several questions again in my mind about the future of human existence. I am really worried about how the upcoming generations of people will live. We may probably see more violence and extreme crimes happeneing without any order or law. Please tell me how we can bring peace to human society?

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Hi friends,
Fever rarely happens to me. But, to my surprise i have been down with fever for the last two weeks, only diagnozed to be thyphoid after nearly 10 days of fever and recurring illness. I am now almost alright at the time of writing this piece. Other than that, shooting for the next schedule of Ippadikku Rose begins tomorrow. Will post more information asit happens soon.

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I have been bad to you by not responding to each invididual posting. Please bear with me, considering that the volume of messages i get can often be overwhelming, i am unable to respond to each message i get here. But do remember, you could impress me with something unique in the way you get my attention and i would be inspired to write back to you as a few of you have been getting my attention from the clouds of messages. But, thank you so much and do keep sending your messages.

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Dear All
Honestly, i do not really like to wish for a great, joyous festive season, because i would really like for everyone to enjoy every day, every monet of their life. However, i take special interest now to reiterate that you all enjoy your moments of living and this festive season is reason enough for me to bring out my wishes to all of you. Enjoy LIFE for sorrow is man-made and can be laughed off.

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The Saree...
One of my most favorite garments
the colors and texture of a saree make me want to wrap my body in them
Sarees have been well developed to be the Indian man's ultimate seductive feminine clothing
I often feel an immense sense of confidence and sensuosity being in a saree
I love sarees. Anyone feel like me about sarees? Post your comments.

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Hi sweeties,
I was very happy to enjoy with my class mates and the entire college crowd the annual cultural event titled Ovations 08 in Loyola College. It was so muc fun. I have been invited as a celebrity guest to college events like these, but to be among the student crowd is much more fun than as a celebrity guest. I thoroughly enjoyed the event, which was attended by Harris JEYRAJ, GV Prakash, Santhanu (Sakkarakatti hero) and a bunch of other celebrities.

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Hi sweeties,
Ipadikku Rose's most recent shooting schedule ended recently. It was qite action packed. Some of the topics personally touched me.

Oh, i had a very scary moment while shooting the episode about snakes. They brought in live poisonous snkes to the shooting set and the snakes were hissing in anger right before me and very close to me. I was scared so much but i pretended to be in control of my senses.

That's all coming up shortly. So stay hooked to the show.

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Hi darlings,
The following events in August kept me fully occupied:
1. Culturals in college. The convocation day for the previous batch of gradutes was designed to be a cultural event. I took active part in it. The days of rehearsal and the oddities that cam along the way and the way we finally managed to put up the performace was something to remember. I danced with a classmate for a fusion song to the thrill of the audience.
2. Deccan Chronicle had covered an exclusive with me of how i got into college and the experience of being the first transgender to study in Loyola College. Followng DC, Times Now English did an exlsuive with me, the first for an audiovisual medium about my college experience.
3. I am really sweating it out to make the next big step in my career and thereby to reach another milestone in gaining visibility and acceptance for sexual minorities. This step is one full of thrill, failures, hopes, empty-words etc, But, i keep trying.
4. Osho is making a stronger impression on me and my lifestyle day by day. I am drawing strength and courage from his words and his views of the world religions and politics.
5. Kalki, my current best friend from the transgender community, has moved to Chennai and we have mooted our business ideas and efforts and are on a path of development, which will enable us to gain greater control in the media and to eventually break down the discrimination facing sexual minorities in Tamil Nadu, and also India.

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August,2008 seems to be a month full of action in my life. I am getting exhaustingly busy. I have my college and friends there who keep me engaged, entertained and socialy happy. But, i have my other career goals that are invigorating me.

College life is refreshingly ineresting. I don't face even a slight degree of intolerance or hatred from my class mates, rather they all love me and i am happy-go-lucky with them. They enjoy my company and we have planned many activites together.

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My program at Loyola college started on 16th July. There was an inauguration function held on the first day. It was fun and very motivating. But, i had to miss the next two days on Thursday andd Friday to be present for my shooting.

So, for me officially classes started on 21 July,2008. I hd a very nice time and the clas was fun, interactive and lively. More than anything, my classmates (all men) are very comfortable with me and i have already made friends. Many of them seem to be full of enthusiasm to do something in the media. I am enjoying the experience thoroughly.

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Ippadikku Rose was shot on the fourth schedule for three days completing six additional episdoes during the schedule. The schedulae lasted three days from 17 to 19 July,2008.

My performance is getting better and i am beginnging to feel much better than before. I am learning the fine details of the act of anchoring a talk show that discusses social issues.

This time again, some very interesting and highly informative topics were discussed. Looking forward to your continued support for the show.

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The episode of Ippadikku Rose that shows on Friday, July 4 can make you tremble in fear. It's a show about black magic, ghosts, etc, But then watch completely to know whether it's all true or not.

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You may all know from my previous blog entries that i am highly excited to go to college. I have been preparing for it. I am slightly disappointed that the start date has been changed to JULY 14, 2008. That means i have a solid 10 days from the time of writing this peiece. Quite boring indeed!

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I am now facing some violent jealosy.Some transgender people in Chennai that are unhappy with my success, my beauty amongst other things are plotting to get me into trouble.

These people are usually very crude-minded and will do things behind my back indrectly and will not face me directly. I am a little worried that i may end up like Anand Jon in the United States.

This message is a little caution note to ensure that if something eventually happens, i have this blog message item as a part of the evidence of the plot unfolding against me.

A big part of the reason that transgender people have been unable to make a huge mark in mainstream sociaety is because of internal exploitation, mafia etc, Now that i am out and open in the mainstream, some ill-minded elements are giving me trouble like nothing better to do.

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Be aware that Ippadikku Rose telecast time has changed from Thursday at 10 pm to Frday at 10 pm.

Friday is a better time than Thursday. Enjoy watching and keep supporting the program.

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Read the article on the New Indian Express site at: http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE820080614023036&Title=Zeitgeist&rLink=0

What makes a woman a woman Saturday June 14 2008 13:29 IST Rose Venkatesan

My of my transgender friends and I have had many negative experiences with Indian doctors, especially when we consulted them for our transition issues, a problem that was highlighted in a popular Tamil health magazine recently where my views on the subject were published alongside those of Indian medical professionals.

Some common ideas that society has about transgender women: 1) They are just men in a woman's dress
2) They can be given medical counselling/shock treatment/ other violent treatments to be/behave like men
3) Transsexuals are homosexual men wearing women's dresses to attract straight men for sexual orgies 4) They are weirdos and mentally disturbed
5) They are dangerous evils out there to destroy society's codes of conduct etc, I have noticed that these are views are held also by a majority of the medical community in India.

The lady child health specialist quoted in the magazine had expressed her doubts over who a real transgender (tirunangai) was.

“You don’t become a woman or a transgender just by wearing a saree,” she says. She subtly implies that hermaphrodites are real tirunangais or transgender people.

A hermaphrodite is a person who is born with male and female genitals. It's an extremely rare condition. She adds that mere surgical removal of the penis does not change one into a woman or a transgender and corroborates this statement by saying that half the penis lies hidden beneath the skin despite the removal of the projecting part.

Just so that she can get a better understanding of transsexuality and for the larger public who read this column, every woman has the clitoris in her vagina.

The clitoris has erectile tissue, a head and most of the same components as a penis. The clitoris gets erect exactly like a penis and provides sexual excitement to the woman.

Does this make a woman a man? Just give some testosterone (male hormones) to a woman and you will see a clitoris projecting much like a penis.

This kind of hormone therapy is given to men trapped in women’s bodies. And, give some estrogen (female hormones) to a man and you will see breast tissue developing.

There are numerous other similarities between the human male and female.

Society often portrays this ability of a human to bear a child and deliver as womanliness. But, does it mean that if a woman is unable to conceive and bear a child, she is not a woman? Does the mean that women, who surgically alter their uterus to stop bearing children, cease to be women? What about women post-menopause when they cannot bear children?

The whole idea of gender being only male or female is highly questionable and seems to be most certainly a product of religious construction.

Determining one’s gender purely on the basis of visible genitals is the biggest joke of the century. What’s even funnier is that Indians, who seem to have accepted the truth about gender as being not just male or female and included, even deified the third gender before British rule, now believe that only male and female are natural and acceptable and are ready to violently disown a child that does not comform to these norms.

Transsexuals or transgenders or tirunangais are people who strongly feel and believe that they belong to a gender opposite to what society assigns them at birth.

It’s the genitals that make the world see them in the incorrect gender, so they try to get rid of them and/or construct something as similar in appearance as possible to that of the gender opposite to their biological gender.

This identification as the other gender is strong, unchangeable and genuine.

The only treatment accepted by medically advanced countries for such people is to transition into the other gender and not shock treatment or counselling to force them to conform. When will the medical community in India wake up to this?

About the Author

Rose Venkatesan is a TV personality and hosts the show Ippadikku Rose on Vijay TV. She blogs at www.close2rose.com

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My show Ippadikku Rose is now broadcasting in Singapore. I am excited to know that it's a big hit there. According to one fan of mine from there, a third of the Tamil population there now views my program and i made news in the headlines in their press. Any Singapore-based viewer of my show can post their comments on how the show is received there on this post comment page.

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As of the time of writing this piece, it's less than 48 hours from the launch of my office. The office wil put me on the right trck and moot my professionalism and career orientiation. I plan to make it big in the Indian media industry as well as the technology indursty. Quite excted about this new development in life. Will write more about how the office launch event went. Lots of ideas are in the pipeline with the opening of the office.

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I had a fantastic chat with my fans on indya.com, Vijay TV's official website on May 6,2008. May 6 is my birthday. I really enjoyed the experience of the chat.

Go to http://chat.indya.com/transcripts/rose/rose.html for the chat transcript with the audio of my voice.

Also here:

indya: Hi
Rose: Hi indya

indya: Hi everyone, Welcome to this special chat with Rose. Today is her birthday! Let us make it special for our dear Rose. Hi Rose, we wish you a very Happy Birthday!
Rose: Hi lovely ones and welcome to my chat! Thank you indya.com

Guest130 : Hi Rose, Happy Birthday. Hope you have a great birthday.
Rose: Thank you so much and I am having a lovely day.

Guest135: Hi Rose, who is your mentor and what circumstances made you take up this role of a talk show host?
Rose : Latha Suresh - my main Mentor. Transgender across the world are seen as unworthy and fit just for sex workers. I want to change this opinion and hence took the media as a medium to reach out.

Guest130: Rose, have you been contacted by any transgender post your success asking for advise or any help. If so, what kind of help?
Rose: Yes. They have seen me as an inspiration. No specific request for any kind of help.

Guest135: Hi Rose...Who is your favorite celebrity until now on your show? And given a choice whom would you want to come as a Guest?
Rose: So far.. Tamil movie director Ram. Given a choice, would invite Shreya. I am her fan.

Guest147: How do you describe yourself?
Rose: I describe myself as confident, stubborn and revolutionary.

Guest135: Hi Rose... Hats off to you and your program! It has seriously changed the way how people think about transgender... You are the torch bearer for them... How does it feel?
Rose: It feels great. I just realised I have so many things to do. It's simply great a feeling

Guest149: Hey Rose can you tell us whether it was more comfortable to you to be in US than in India because of the social issues?
Rose: No I think India is much better for people like us.

Guest149: Hey Rose do you plan to get married?
Rose: Ha ha... Well I have lost trust in men. From my experience, men are not fit for marriage. Honestly I have always wanted to be settled into married life but have been cheated many times, so prefer to be where I am.

Guest135: Hi Rose... Can you tell us which was the most happiest moment in your life and the saddest?
Rose: My most happy moment - (Several in fact) - the best being in Love and the saddest being ostracised by the society and looked down upon.

Guest130: HAAAPPPPPYYYY BBBBDDDDAAAYYY ROSE.
Rose: THHANK YOU SO MUCHHHHHHHH!

Guest160: How do you describe relationship in your words.
Rose: Oh gawd... Relationships make life beautiful and meaningful but there should be some self dependence in relationships.

Guest130: Who do you think is the sexiest actor? Guess your favorite actress is Shreya.
Rose : Actor... Well somewhere I like Vishal - Real manly hunk. Hindi I like - Hrithik Roshan.

Aarthy_tweety: wish you a very very happy birthday and what is special to you in this b'day?
Rose: Special launch today: close2Rose.com. Launching it today and another special thing is that I am also going to hang out with my friends. By the way www.close2Rose.com is my website created for my fans.

Guest130: Rose, did you hear about the controversy of footballer Ronaldo getting entangled with 3 transgender prostitutes. Do you think it shows transgender in a bad light.
Rose: Not at all. In fact the transgender people are getting back on what the society at large did to them... Do you understand my point...

Guest153: We watch your program without fail and you are doing great. But your dressing sense is great? Who selects your sarees?
Rose: Awww... Thanks that's credit to my stylist Nithya.

Aarthy_tweety: Me and my friends are mad fans of you....Because of your confidence and boldness to face things. Who is the first person who wished you on your b'day? Did your parents and relatives wish you?
Rose: The first person to wish me was my current boyfriend. My parents and relatives haven't even wished me...You see I am ostracised even within my own house and family.

Guest156: What exactly do you expect your life partner if you had an opportunity to get married.
Rose: I would expect love, trust and complete openness and of- course respect for who I am - as a person.

Guest135: If you were the god for a day... What would you do?
Rose: Ha ha ha... Would break down all social restrictions and allow people to live happily...

Guest173: So have you been to Toronto? In Toronto we have great number of Transgender and we have support groups you must visit Toronto.
Rose: I have not. But now will surely try. I consider Canada a beautiful place to live.

Guest135: Rose...Who do you think is hotter.. You or Shahrukh Khan!
Rose: Ha ha ha... Oh god... "I am hotter!"

Guest149: Do you ever wish to go for a surgery to completely change your sex?
Rose: Yes in fact. I want to in fact broadcast my sex change therapy so that more people get informed.

Guest130: If you were stuck on a deserted island and you were given the choice of company who would you pick - Sreesanth or Harbhajan
Rose: Sreeshanth.. Real cute...

Guest130: Rose, since today is your birthday, would like to ask you... Have you ever regretted not being able to live a normal life as Ramesh.
Rose: I am living a normal life as Rose. My life as Ramesh would be an abnormal one.

Guest153: Any plans to enter politics to focus and address more social issues?
Rose: Not in the real future... But I plan to enter movies a big way...

Guest147: Are you doing in any movies or serials currently?
Rose: Very good question. I am very seriously planning to enter movies. Want to screenplay and direct. In fact have also written several scripts already.

Guest149: Happy Birthday Rose... A Rose for a Rose.
Rose: Thank you so much.

Guest185: What is your thought process, when choosing subjects for your show?
Rose: I am more interested in social issues. More interested to challenge the male dominance in society.

Guest149: Whom would you like to go for a date with Shahrukh or Kareena?
Rose: Oh gawd.. How Kareena! Not even Shahrukh as he is not my kinda hunk. But, I would always like to go on a date with a normal person not a star or celebrity.

Guest126: How do you plan to change the mentality of Indians towards transgender????
Rose: Would enlighten the fact that now we have now turned to treat transgender worse due to the influence of the foreign culture. Would like to enlighten the fact that we as transgender were not ill treated so badly in the past.

Guest149: Every Rose has its thorn what about you?
Rose: Ahhh gawd... Ha ha ha... Well... Hmmm... Very difficult question... I am a very tough person for people who try to dominate me. I always value dignity and respect for self from others.

Guest126: Rose why is it that people want to change their gender?
Rose:People do not want to change their gender but rather express their gender... This happen due to social pressures...

Guest187: Will you be friendly to a really biggest fan of yours ?
Rose: Of course not a problem at all. But to be my friend that person will have to pick me as a normal person and not as a star.

Guest153: This program is a great hit? Will we be seeing you in Sun TV or Kalainyar TV soon?
Rose: Ha ha... Ok. I like Vijay TV. I am also open to show ideas on other channels but my show will only be on Vijay TV.

Guest135: Hi Rose... Can you give us some style tips? How do you manage your hair? Your skin...?
Rose: Well I keep away from the sun. Use the night cream, I exercise and also keep a healthy diet.

Guest173: All the best and best wishes on your Birthday, I have to leave, going to work it is morning 6 am for me, nice chatting with you. If you are interested to Visit Toronto I give my email I can arrange nice vacation in Toronto, My email ...
Rose: Oh wonderful. That's great. Will take your id from indya.com. And thanks for staying on to chat with me today.

Guest130: What do you think of the way Transgender are being stereotyped in movies?
Rose: Ahhh... My heart breaks and bleeds. Indian comedians are so un elevated that they choose to defame the transgender stereotype.

Guest185: Do you think by highlighting critical issues, it is being heard by the respective authorities or people who can make a difference?
Rose: Yes definitely... To a certain extent.

Guest135: Rose... Can you tell us something about yourself which until now no one knows! Who is your favorite in Kollywood?
Rose: Ok... I am a very dreamy person. I am a person who just likes to enjoy life. My favorite is Vishal, Shreya, Yuvan Shankar Raja and Harris Jeyaraj.

Guest160: You have given a new platform for this chat on indya.com. How do you feel about it?
Rose: I am really excited... Never thought I would find so many fans here...

Guest153: Given a chance to be born again, which gender will you like to born?
Rose: Oh gawd... Hmmm I would like to born a transgender again... You see if born a male or female... Wouldn't have got the recognition I have got so far.

Guest149: How did you convince your parents about your decision?
Rose: I could never convince them... No matter how hard I tried... I could never convince them.

Guest126: Do you think it is possible to eliminate the reasons for someone to change their gender. May be by counseling or something else.
Rose: Well nobody changes gender and it is impossible to eliminate the reasons. It is nature's call and you cannot force it..

Guest194: So roza do you have any favorites in Hollywood.
Rose: Yeah... Ellen Degeneres, Steven Spielberg... To name a few.

Guest160: Hi Rose I am Depak from Banglore... Will you marry me?
Rose: Ohhhh ... Well you have to first understand the consequences of marrying a transgender person... And if you convince me that you understand me and is willing to marry me... Will sure consider this;-)

Guest149: Do you really think that there is a male dominance. Its really changing buddy as now we males are getting dominated by females?
Rose: No... I am looking for a world of equality but still have to see dominance in all fields...

Guest187: Rose will you accept a proposal to act in a Tamil movie as a heroine?
Rose: Absolutely... But just that I should be treated as a lady and not as a transgender.

Guest149: Hey Rose how old have you been?
Rose: I am 20 + and 30 -

Guest185: Rose, what do you thinks needs to be done to change the prevalent attitude towards transgender in India?
Rose: Stop double standards... If the society is not hypocritical the world would sure be a better place for transgender.

Guest153: These days at Thursday 10pm you watch your show or an IPL match?
Rose: My show and I do not watch cricket much.

Guest130: Rose... If you travel by train and you see transgender coming and asking you for money.. How would you respond? And how do you think others should respond.
Rose: When they know I am a transgender, they would not ask me. They are asking the society a fine for their hypocrisy.

Guest149: How do you like yourself to be remembered?
Rose: As a very confident, confident and glamorous super star.

chony: How do you feel by the response of public on indya.com today. I am sorry I am not good in English.
Rose: It's been a surprise b'day present. I am thrilled and bowled over...

Guest187: I am Janani Balasubramaniam from Hyderabad I would like to be friendly with you and speak to you when ever I like please answer.
Rose: Surely you can. You can contact me on the Ippadilkku Rose forum on indya.com and also on my website.

malathy_2008: I LOVE YOUR SHOW I NEVER MISS YOUR SHOW. When will you come to chat again.
Rose: Oh gawd... May be after a few weeks depending on indya's invite...

Aarthy_tweety: Once again wish you a very happy b'day anD pray that you should be accepted by your family... Nice to have a chat...bye.
Rose: Thank you so much for your encouragement.

Guest149: Have you ever thought about being a mother and if so how you will make it possible?
Rose: Ahhh... I am very happy this way... The world is already populated and I am happy that we transgender people keep it less burdened.

chony: Do you speak French?
Rose: Nooo.

Guest185: Right now you have a show and your voice is being all over the world. Do not you think it is now for the authorities to give you the respect you deserve? Rose, why do you have a grudge against us poor males?
Rose: The Tamil Nadu government is already giving us this respect... Want the Indian Goverment to follow. Poor males... Ha ha because you poor males have cheated us poor transgender's.

Guest130: What has been your most memorable b'day?
Rose: Hmmmm... Last year I spent it with the most emotionally connected boyfriend of my life

Guest173: What do you like to say for your fans in Toronto?
Rose: I wish I could come and do a stage show for all you there live.

Guest185: Happy birthday Rose, wishing all the success in life.
Rose: Thank you again...

Guest185: Rose who is your favorite all-time personality?
Rose: Very difficult.... Oprah Winfrey.

Guest194: So are you gonna do any more program?
Rose: Of course I just started... Come on...

Guest209: Many more happy returns of the day! I hope it must be a special one!
Rose: It definitely been a special day... Thanks to you people for all the admiration and response today.

indya: Indya.com wishes Rose a very happy birthday again! Please give out a message for those fans whose questions could not be taken today.... May be a song, poem... Something special for all those fans!Rose has a really special message for all you fans! Plus a song she sang... Watch out for it soon here only on indya.com
Rose: Thanks a lot indya... As for my fans here... Have a special song just for you... You should soon hear it on indya.com

indya: Thanks Rose.. Have a nice day!
Rose: Bye all... Love you all. You made my day special.

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Hello dear ones,

Life is going very well. I am very happy and peaceful. One of my longtime dreams has been to study in a college in my true identity as a transgender girl. Also, my recent interest is to study direction, camera work, editing etc,

When i did some research out of entusiasm, i found out that Loyola college in Chennai offers a short-term program exactly to cater to my needs. I decided to take the plunge. I am going back to college -wow, what a great thing. I have already met the course coordintor and she is perfectly fine with my identity and i can join. I will start going from July 7.

Just the thought of going to college again makes me feel wonderful. I am imagining i would get wonderful friends and just enjoy life, while sharpening my skills and going closer towards my career goals at the same time

I am a happpyyyyy ggggiiiiiirrrrrllllll

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Here is the link to my furth article on the New Indian Express
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE820080607032437&Page=8&Title=Zeitgeist&Topic=0&

Section 377 is vague and outdated
Saturday June 7 2008 13:46 IST

Rose Venkatesan

A landmark legal proceeding is underway in India. The Delhi High Court is currently hearing whether Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code should be held on to by the Indian legal system. Simply put, Section 377 was based on the Victorian (Christian) views of morality. It assumes that only penile-vaginal sex (sex between a biological man and a biological woman, hereafter termed nonbio-hetero) is natural and any other forms of sex are classified under the term ‘carnal intercourse' by the British. When this law was drafted in India in 1860, by the Victorian rulers, the law was rather vague and could easily be misinterpreted. The ambiguity was because although the intention of the law was to clearly criminalise non-bio-hetero sexual activity, the term ‘homosexuality' dare not speak its name in the era of the drafting of the law.

In fact, it can be applied even within a bio-heterosexual couple for indulging in sexual acts other than penile-vaginal sex; it seems obvious that the law was drafted clearly to eliminate homosexuality. Indians have been fooled into believing that non-bio-hetero sexuality is not natural and I'm shocked to see many Indians thinking of homosexuality as an import from the West, a 180-degree shift from the previous stand of acceptance and inclusion.

The truth is that the word ‘homosexuality' is definitely a Western import but not the act per se. I am sick of the term and that's why I invented non-bio-hetero sexuality.

What the law has been successful at doing is not eliminating non-bio-hetero sexuality, but creating a dangerous underworld for some people to enjoy with a lot of guilt, love and sex, which the rest of the population is privileged to show on TV, movies, magazines, newspapers and all the media. Yes, the media has well been used to glamourise heterosexual sex, but non-bio-hetero sexuality has remained a despicable act in the eyes of the media.

If Section 377 is properly enforced, then the entire sexually active or once-sexually-active population of the country will be in prison. I assert this because non-penile-vaginal sex is so common among people of all sexualities. Not a single man or woman, who has had sex at least once in their life, can deny that they have not indulged in oral sex, thigh sex and/or anal sex at least once. If they deny this, they're most likely lying or have not got a chance at doing it. Section 377 has failed miserably at eliminating non-bio-hetero sexuality.

Evidently, no law anywhere in the world can effectively eliminate non-bio-hetero sexuality from any country. But what these laws and resultant social attitudes towards such non-bio hetero sexual behaviours have done is to cause some people to live a secret life full of guilt, low esteem and depression. Also, such people become suicidal and some countries go to the extent of killing people that exhibit non-bio-hetero sexual behaviours. A case in point is Gambia, whose president recently issued a warning to gay men to leave the country within 24 hours or face severe consequences, stricter than in Iran.

Some major crimes that we see in today's society have sexual frustration or guilt at the very base of the crime. So if we want to limit horrendous crimes such as rape or murder we should become a more sexually tolerant society, like Scandinavia, the world's least crime-prone zone.

The irony is that the British themselves have failed at retaining the law in their country and were forced to repeal it in 1967, when it made gay partnerships completely legal. Why then are we Indians so stubborn on retaining it? It's ironic that we fought so hard to gain freedom from the British but have so warmly accepted and guarded their views of morality , which they themselves have let go of.

As a prominent member of India's non-bioheterosexual population, I'm waiting for the day when Section 377 is finally repealed or amended to legalise consensual non-bio-heterosexual activity between adults. Only time will tell whether I will be able to celebrate freely or continue to be a highly visible and possible victim of 377.

Rose Venkatesan is a TV personality and hosts the show Ippadikku Rose on Vijay TV. She blogs at www.close2rose.com

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You can read my third article on the New Indian Express at the link or below:
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE820080530195759&Title=Zeitgeist&rLink=0

Protect our sex workers Saturday May 31 2008 06:19 IST Rose Venkatesan

Afew weeks ago, I happened to make friends with a 20-year-old pregnant lady at the Marina beach in Chennai. She was plump, yet beautiful. She told me that at nights she would sleep in the backyard of a nearby government hospital along with a few other girls and poor men. When I inquired further, I found she had a heart-wrenching story to share.

A few months ago, she had been approached by a young man who claimed to be in love with her and she had fallen for his sweet words and promises of marriage. She ran away from her parents for this man and the guy had used her sexually but he dumped her when he found out she was pregnant. When she went looking for him, she found out that he was already married and had children. She was thoroughly shattered. But, the innocent young girl could not seek justice in this situation and could not even return to her family. Left with no alternative, she is now providing sex to the hungry men of the city in order to survive.

And as if her story were not tragic enough, she is often the target of rowdies and policemen who abuse her and extort her hard-earned money. Most of the women who are into the sex trade have been innocent girls like my lovely friend.

Sex work is the only means of survival for many women and almost all transgender women due to the current nature of society,which is highly hyptocritical and male favoring. While, if a transgender girl approaches any employer for a job, she is most likely to be turned down and even laughed at, many young genetic women are targets of sexual exploitation at the workplace. Moreover, it is only if the woman is either skilled or educated, that she can compete for the few opportunities that are available to women. That leaves out most of the transgender girls as they are almost completely without education. Also, there is a higher level of discrimination against transgender girls than genetic girls when seeking employment.

So, due to the threat of sexual harassment at work places, lack of education and a general ostracism from society for various reasons, many women and most transgender girls voluntarily resort to sex work. But the Indian Government’s laws do not criminalise sex work as such. The laws are aimed only at eliminating exploitation of women by pimps, traffickers, middlemen and brothel-owners. The individual sex worker is not committing an offence according to Indian law as long as she does not have sex in public. But, this truth is mostly not known to the innocent sex worker on the street. Further, even if the legal system provides them some degree of freedom to earn from sex work, society’s double standards force them to live a closeted life.

Such closeted living and lack of knowledge of the law on the part of the sex worker is the situahyption that rowdies and some greedy policemen take advantage of. I know a middle-aged sex worker in Madurai who was constantly threatened by rowdies in her neighborhood. One day, they barged into her house and took away some of her belongings and she had to keep quiet to keep her neighbours from learning about the nature of her income. A transgender friend of mine was also tricked into going with a plain-clothed police officer posing as a client but once they were away from the public, he beat her up violently and warned her against coming to the street to attract prospective clients in that area again as some of the “morally superior” men and women who lived there had complained.

No matter what society and the law does to curb sex work, it is just not going to go away. It is one of the oldest and longest surviving professions in the world. Also, in today’s society of forced heterosexual monogamous marriages, sex workers have become a necessity that society is trying to cover up.

Only a sex worker — genetic woman or transgender woman — can tell you the truth about the number of married men who resort to them, putting the concept of marriage and monogamy to shame. It’s high time that sex workers- women, transgender women and effeminate men (male sex workers) — were taken note of by the Indian government and a legal protective system built for them as otherwise they would continue to be abused and/or even killed by greedy men.

About the author: Rose Venkatesan is a TV personality and hosts the show Ippadikku Rose on Vijay TV. She blogs at www.close2rose.com

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I am a newsmaker. I have been making headlines and been featured on numerous magazines and news artciles in the media. While i am mostly happy with this development, i am quite often hurt when i read some news reports or articles about me. This is because the report or article is written by the author with me as 'a man in a woman's dress'.

It becomes very clear when reading such news items that the writer of that news item had absolutely no belief that i am the gender that i present to the outside world- female, no matter what i did. I need to present that gender to the outside world becuase, although i have long known i am a woman, i had been seen as a male much to my extreme discomfort. Now, that i am openly living and presenting as a woman, i wonder why some news reporters, journalists, media people just don't want to see me as a woman. What's their problem with accepting me as a woman.

Some journalists openly address me using masculine pronouns such as 'sir' and use such pronouns as 'he','him' etc, in their articles, reports. If anything, they are probably purposefully hurting me by doing that. Some people safely avoid using any gender specific pronouns while interviewing but go about using masculine pronouns when they publish their reports or articles. That's very hurting in deed, despite being cunning.

I am really uncomfortable with the way my parents treat me, address me etc, because they see me as a boy or a man NO MATTER WHAT. As though that's not hurting enough, they go around talking about me as a boy or a man in the neighborhood leading to them addressing me as a male hurtingly, despite my avoiding neighbors, relatives and mostly lonely at home. At the maximum, i can put up with my parents calling me using masculine pronouns, i can't accept any one else doing that.

Not having undergone the surgery is probably one main reason that journalists think i am a man. But, hey why do you fix your eyes and thoughts on what's down under? Why not just see my beautiful feminine face, my feminine gestures, my voice modulation (i know some features of my voice are masculine, but certainly not my modulation). If people can not accept transgender humans like me in the gender in which we present ourselves, i urge linguists around the world to sit down and come up with new pronouns, prefixes, suffixes etc, for the transgender kind. But, hey, i know they won't do that. The major religions of the world just won't allow you to do that, much like they have successfully done so far and marginaized transgenders, gays, lesbians etc, because they want you to believe that only male and female are natural and everything else is unnatural. I am sick of these gender-addressing terms and behaviors.

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Hi lovelies,

Nakheeran is a very popular investigative journalism weekly magazine in Tamil. The edition relesed on 25, May 2008 had my photo on the cover page and a deep interview about Tamil Nadu govt's appreciable inclusion of trangender students into colleges with the groundbreaking recognition of the gender 'T' on the application forms for admission making three gender choices available to students while applying. Amazing indeed, Read Nakkheeran for details.

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Hi darlings,

My second article was pblished on The New Indian Express, Chennai edition of Sturday, May 24,2008. The link to the article online is here:

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE820080524065411&Title=Zeitgeist&rLink=0

Read the article here:

Not just objects of desire Saturday May 24 2008 17:15 IST Rose Venkatesan

An American acquaintance of mine recently said that he finds Indian men to be “extremely sexually frustrated”. The main sign of Indian men’s frustration, he claims, is that they stare at anything sexually titillating or anything that can be an object of their sexual instincts. To the men who stare so wildly, the person who is the object of their ogling is actually seen as nothing better than a mere object to be used. To the average reader of this article, the object is most definitely a woman.

Think again. You will be surprised to know that it’s not just women. Effeminate men and transgender girls fall under the umbrella of the ‘object’ that I just mentioned.

What’s worse? Indian men stare more obsessively and wildly at these unexpected ‘objects’ I mentioned above when compared to other girls. This staring cannot be simply ignored as curiosity.

The stare is clearly a reflection of the Indian man’s sexual frustration. While staring, the man’s mind is bombarded with a lot of imagery about sexually playing with this ‘object’. Sometimes, the imagery may even include fantasies about raping the ‘object’. Call it bisexuality, homosexuality, perversion or whatever! Indian men (and I guess men around the world) have a definite fantasy about and attraction towards anything humanly feminine.

We are trying so hard to box men into categories but the fact is that men are attracted to femininity wherever it is present. The usual excuse that society may give for such non-hetero-normative attractions and instincts is that Indian men do not get girls easily. Bullshit! Even many married men, rich men, educated men ogle at the ‘objects’ I’ve listed. The key word here is “men” no matter what the denomination. That, of course, does not mean that all men are attracted to all of the ‘objects’. To each man certain types of persons from each of the above categories of ‘objects’ are attractive. One thing is certain: the attraction has to do with femininity.

While, I am not against the attraction at all,what I am against is forgetting that the ‘object’ is a person. Whether it is women or transgender women or effeminate men, it is the feminine energy present in these individuals that attracts the masculine energy present in men. But men should be more decent in their expression of longing. Most of my transgender friends and I have had numerous uncomfortable experiences while walking down the road or just going into public areas such as streets, theatres and shopping malls.

Men just ogle. Many men take transgender girls and effeminate men for granted assuming them to be always available for sex. Some may even assume that they are born only to be sexually used by men 24/7. But, men are more cautious about approaching biological women in awkward ways as there is legal and social system protecting women in such circumstances in most cases. Many men go about using cheap language and dirty remarks about transgirls and effeminate men,which is clearly reflective of two things:

1) Indian society grooms men to be disrespectful of the feminine kind, especially transgender kind and, 2) Indian men are trying to fight against their own attraction towards the transgender kind by turning the attraction into hatred and thus verbal and/or physical abuse.

I believe that respect for the individual is what attracts the individual more than physical features. By this, I mean that if a man is truly interested in a woman, a transgender woman or an effeminate man, he should first respect his own attraction. Then he has to respect the individual who he is attracted to. This respect can be expressed by avoiding staring, cheap language and molesting in public, but actually publicly going out and trying to strike a decent conversation with the individual without any hint of being in a hurry for sex or concerned about the people around. Such an approach makes a muchneeded first impression for a nice relationship.

Most of my transgender friends have said that they would be more attracted to a man who is bold enough to take his love and attraction for the transgender girl beyond the darkness of four walls into the open.

So, you staring Indian men who are reading this article, be more respectful to the feminine kind and win over their hearts. You will be surprised to find that numerous doors to lovemaking are open to you if you are bolder and more respectful.

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Hi folks,

The shooting schedule tht began on 20 May ended on 24th May. I was personally quite happy with my performnce this schedule as against the first schedule. Also, the topics of analysis this time are very striking and i am sure the upcoming episodes are going to make audiences sit at the edge of their seaats. There is health caution, lifestyle caution, social caution all based on education on various recent shocking events. Stay hooked to Ippadikku Rose. But, i must thank each and every fan or regular Ippadikku Rose viewer that provided suggestions and feedback that i have been moulded and finetuned by your suggestions and feedback. Thank you.

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May 18,2008 was a day for a cause. I happened to participate in the cndle light rally organized by several Networks of HIV+ people at Marina beach in Chennai. When i reached, te really was over and a gathering was happening to promote the causes for the rights of HIV+ people. As soon as i reached, i realized what kind of a reach my program has made and what kind of fan following i have. Numerous peoplecame to collect my autograph and to wish me and just to praise me.

It was nice to know that people were welcoming me to their homes for lunch and a good time with them. Such a kind of treatment encourages me and makes me feel as though i am living in my dreams. I never imagined a transgender person was going to get such good respect and adoration. All is going well.

Some young girls openly stated that they were jelous of my beauty and that they loved me. Some families even gave me simple gifts that could readily get as a token of their love for me. I was moved, but i also realized that i should not make much public appearances any more to retain my celebrity status and not to get involved wit any controversy. But being the outgoing and freedom loving person that i am, i am finding it quite hard to balance my celebrity status with my socil needs.

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hello folks,

I am currently busy shooting for Ippadikku Rose. The topics we have chosen this time are really nerve-racking and eye-opening. i was personally touched and moved by the stories i had heard and the emotions i saw. It's all coming soon on Star Vijay TV as of 21st May 2008, the time of writing this peiece.

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It's amazing to learn that the Tamil Nadu government has become inclusive of the transgender kind. The kinds of steps that the government is taking in Tamil Nadu are going to make lives of transgender people enjoyable, instead of full of pains, uncertainties and social rejection all along.

While i was a student of an engineering college and before in Chennai a few years ago, i had to present as a male. Moreover, i was not even able to understand my condition at that time because of the social conditioning and media portrayals, although i knew deep inside i was not comfortable being male. I was teased, harassed, bullied and made to feel unworthy and as a cheap existence. I used to wonder and dream about being able to study in the identity of a woman- transgender identity.

To my immense surprise, the Tamil Nadu government has made it possible for transgender people to study in the government colleges. What's more? On the application for the college admission, there are three genders now that an applicant can select from as their gender- Male, Female and Transgender. I believe nowhere in the world has such a recognition for the third gender been given. This is what true Hindu culture had been doing- recognizing the third gender and including it in society. Evidently, it's foreign influences in India that have changed the way Indians see and treat memebrs of the third gender kind. What's funny and annoying at the same time is that Indians believe the third gender are an import from Western societies.

I am extremely thankful to the Tamil Nadu government to have started a huge effort at making life comfortable and worth living for the thrid gender kind.

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On the 10th of May i went to Lakshya's home as she had just returned home that day from the hospital after her sex reassignment surgery. Lakshya's mother had come in that day from Kerala to stay with and take care of Lakshya for a month until Lakshya recovers. Lakshya had invited me to talk to her mother and convince her and support her through her ex-son/now-daughter's turning point in life.

What i found amazing was that Lakshya's mother was strong, comfortable and seemed at ease with Lakshya's bold step and surgery. Most transgender girls are dumped by their own mothers when they attempt to present their true gender. But, Lakshya's mother is a gem of a person. She is a 67-year-old lady who seems to have faced so much in life that she has taken this easily.

When in Kerala a few months ago, she happened to see a beautiful girl talk with a manly voice on tv while she was cruising from channel to channel. She was excited and even cried out to ther other members of her family to come see it. It was Vijay Tv and the woman with that voice was me. She was then informed by Lakshya that it was Rose, her friend. I had visited Lakshya's mother and family with Lakshya, when she was Rajesh and i was Ramesh in 2004. Lakshya's mother then knew it was the Ramesh that she once hosted at her home that is now Rose.

My mom, on the other hand, is such a negative energy. I do not talk to my mother. She is completely, violently against my expression of my real self. She would try everythig possible so that i could be the abnormal Ramesh that i once was. She had beaten me up, chucked me out of the house, did not care whether i was alive or dead while i was away, worse still she did not even care to attend to me when i was lying in the intensive care unit for attempting suicide many months ago because of my cheating boy friend. And, now, after gaining a lot of courage, i have moved back into my home and family by figthing with them for my rights and using my claim to the family property as my right to live in that house, i m just staying there. My mother makes it a hell for me. I can feel the negative vibration emanating from her at the sight of me. She, in fact, stated that she wished i died from a road accident while i was riding on my two-wheeler. She also stated i was eating her food and behaving too much. So i now cook my own food and do not talk to my mom. Indian culture gives a high status to the love a mother has for her child, but people like me know how false it is. The same mother who is iconized as the epitome of human love for another human is easily one of the worst inhuman beings to a child like us. Lakshya's mother is one in a thousand. I was really emotional when i saw Lakshya being attended to by her loving mother.

I have been cheated at the hands of society, my own family, men who entered my life as boy friends just to sexually use me and then dump me when their time comes for marrige.

My heart bleeds and tears roll out of my eyes when i think about all the trauma and rejection, humiliation, harassment i faced at the hands of people, even close ones, during my process of living a true life as a woman.

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The link to my article on the New Indian Express:

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE820080510030531&Title=Zeitgeist&rLink=0

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Culture can be defined as a set of practices, activities, symbols representing those practices etc by people. Going by that definition, culture is clearly different from place to place, religion to religion, person to person etc.

India is a country of rich history and cultural heritage. Literature and art of Indian origin often date back thousands of years. A careful chronological analysis of India’s art forms clearly points towards one fact. The fact is that Indian culture has been fluid. What was commonly followed and completely acceptable a thousand years ago has changed over the course of time to be despicable and a socially awkward evil now. And, what is despicable now may soon be socially celebrated. This fact is most applicable to the social view of sexuality in India.

A deeper analysis of current India’s cultural climate brings to light another very important fact. The fact is that cultural rules, laws, practices etc, have been favourable to men and their sexuality for some time now. Women’s sexuality in India has been kept under strict scrutiny by the upholders of Indian culture for some time now. Right from a young age, girls are told, taught, and even forced to keep their sexuality under control and socially encouraged, if not forced, to keep it invisible. To understand this situation better, walk out onto a main road or a popular hang out of your city or town and take five minutes of your time to count the number of men and women who pass by you.

You will soon come to the conclusion that men vastly outnumber women. This very fact may seem meaningless but an intelligent analysis of this fact will bring to light a huge social phenomenon. And, that is the fact that Indian society today is constructed favouring men’s freedom of expression, men’s sexuality, men’s rights etc, whereas women are to stay in small safety zones such as their homes, limited workplaces, educational institutes, places of worship and a few other restricted places. What’s worse? Even in those few places where you can see women, they are under social scrutiny as regards their sexuality. One common lame reason that society has invented and strictly retained such a microscopic scrutiny of women’s sexuality is the fact that women have the womb and free expression of their sexuality will keep them in pregnancy for most of their life and needing care and attention all along. As a result, virginity and fidelity of women have been raised to a great status and so society has almost completely crushed the sexual needs and rights of women by ceaselessly watching over the woman. This forms the prime basis of crushing the freedom of women.

Maybe that was true hundreds of years ago, but in this current age of medical advancement, we have condoms, contraceptives, sterilization surgery etc, that would enable a woman not to suffer pregnancy most of her life. So, retaining such a strict scrutiny of women’s sexuality seems hypocritical to me. But, that’s exactly it. These social rules preventing a woman from expressing her sexuality and her freedom seem to me to have been invented so that men could occupy most of the spheres of development and women could be prevented from ever occupying productive and developmental roles.Men have feared that women, if allowed free space everywhere, would overtake them and take higher social position than them and so have used social rejection of women, who even slightly express their sexuality freely, as a means to push out women so that only men could occupy high social positions. So, women who go out into the open away from the safe zones that society has imposed upon them are seen as lewd and are immediately a target of social rejection.

The prime reason as obvious to me for social repression of women’s sexuality is so that men can dominate the world. But, the irony is that such a society is essentially dangerous as men’s sexuality will also suffer in a society that represses women’s sexuality and as a result society will become violent. Actually, Indian society is already violent.

Repression of women’s sexuality is having a snowball effect. The safest countries in the world are most often those where everyone’s sexuality is respected and accommodated. Such a society does not provoke aggressive behavior such as rape, murder etc, that occur due to sexual repression. Social rules and codes of conduct must aim for a peaceful and harmonious human existence and not drive humans towards crime and playing one personality in the face of society and a different one altogether when society is not watching. It’s time we Indians developed tolerance of various sexual expressions and put an end to the continued double standards we hold on to.

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As mentioned earlier in this blog, my first article was published on The New Indian Express dated 10.5.08 on the Society section of the Chennai edition. It was titled -Indian Women Shackled By Traditions.

I have been asked write a series of articles and i plan to do so. It is fun to take the pen and use it strongly.))Well, actually, i only use my laptop and not the pen((

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The New Indian Express of Chennai have contacted me a few times and requested me to write articles on sexuality. I have sent in a sample article and they have expressed interest in publishing it and also are interested in a long series of articles written by me. The article is likely to appear on their Saturday complementary papers. I am looking forward to bringing out my views of human sexuality based on my experiences and understanding of it.

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Lakshya, formerly Grace further formerly Rajesh, a longtime friend of mine and one of my insipriations to express my true gender underwent her sex reassignment surgery on May 1,2008. It was not informed to me. I was quite angry with her for not informing me, one of her best transgender friends, about this most important point and event of her life. Eventally i let go of my ego and anger and i realized that her surgery was actually suddenly advanced to an earlier date than planned. So she did not have the time to tell people about her surgery which was due to happen the very next day of the phone call from the surgeon to get ready for admission.

Anyways, i have been seeing her over the last few days of the surgery. It seems really painful and it is making me a little scared about my surgery in the future. However, the pain is worth it.

I honestly, personally, do not believe that i have to undergo that surgery to become a woman. I am woman to myself regardless of whether i hold on to the vestigial male organ or surgicaly construct a female-like sex organ. But i plan to undergo the surgery and telecast it nationaly across India as a means of educating the masses about sex reassignment and the whole process. People should be enlightened of the fact that transgneder people are normal with emotions, aspirations etc, One important way of doing this is to inform the huge msses of what it means to be transgender, what kinds of pains a person has to undergo in their quest to be seen in their true gender etc,

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On May 6 from 3 pm to 4 pm i enjoyed a fabulos chat on indya.com with my fans. There were several interesting questions. I liked some of the questions and some were very challengign and really made me think whil answering

I liked the question about whether i would choose Sreeshanth or Harbhajan Singh (Indian cricketers caught in a controversy as Harbhajan slapped Sreeshanth amidst huge public attention) when deserted in an island. My answer was i liked Sreeshanth. He is so cute.

Aother question was from a guy who asked if i would marry him. Now that was a funny question. My reply was ;i would consdier him if he understood the consqeuences of marrying transgender girl and was willing to face society boldly with his love for me'.

There were several other interested questions. You could read my chat transcript on www.indya.com

Except for the chat with my friends and the morning business with building my website, my birthday was rather boring.

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Hello dear ones,
Today is my birthday- the 6th of May. To make my day productive i sat down and developed my website and launched it in a matter of hours with this blog included.
Come back to the site and keep watching my blog to floow my life. And!!! Thanks for logging on.

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