First transgender to receive Padma Shri

 NP NEWS 24 ONLINE: TAMIL NADU:    Narthiki Natraj, a renowned Bharatnatyam dancer from Tamil Nadu, is the first transgender to be honoured with the Padma Shri, one of the top civilian awards in India. Narthiki says that she was chosen for the civilian award because of merit and her talent as a Bharatnatyam dancer and not because of her gender or identity.

Narthiki is a professional Bharatnatyam dancer who specialises in Thanjavur-based Nayaki Bhava tradition of the dance. While thanking the government of India for recognising her talent and art, Narthiki told news agency ANI, “I was chosen not because of my transgender identity but on basis of merit as a Bharatnatyam artist. I have given more than 30 years of my life in the service of Bharatnatyam.”

Even after having faced a lot of obstacles throughout her life, Narthiki, who is in her fifties, hides all the hurt and feels like a 16-year-old child. The transwoman calls herself Nityakalyani on social networking site Facebook as she feels like ‘a beautiful transgender woman, a beautiful dancer’ from inside.

On the eve of the 70th Republic Day of the country, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had announced the names of 112 awardees of the Padma awards.

It’s not just dance but various other fields where transgenders have made their mark. Previously, Apsara Reddy has become first transgender woman to be appointed the national general secretary of All India Mahila Congress (AIMC), Sathyasri Sharmila became India’s first transgender lawyer, shunning the stereotypical mindset behind, she set an example by pursuing law so that she can fight against the injustice, Joyita Mondal became the first judge as she was appointed at Lok Adalat in north Bengal, Shabi joined Marine Engineering Department of the Eastern Naval Command around eight years ago. However, she underwent the sex reassignment surgery in 2016 in Delhi. After the surgery she joined the naval base in Vishakhapatnam.