Pageant Rituals

Barely an hour later,Suassane took the ramp of the Indian Super Queen (India’s first national transgender beauty pageant) beauty contest with a sense of rhythm that could only have derived from the vibrant bylanes of Beleghata (where she hails from). Her hips sway with a voluptuous confidence which is more graceful than lewd,and her arms and legs cut swift pattern through the dank air of the enclosed banquet hall that is the venue of the event. Once she is done with her walk,she smiles and stands in a corner of the stage,fiddling with the duppatta of her red zardozi lehanga,as if the catwalk had been a slightly embarrassing faux pas. A question is shot at her by the judge (why do you want to win the crown),she looks at the judge self-consciously,as if to be sure that the judge hasn’t cracked a joke at her expense. And then she answers,with that same pleasing lilt,more a question than an answer (“I will use the platform to be show the world how beautiful I am. I’m sure that all those who made fun of me,will acknowledge my beauty after I win the crown). The judges seem happy with the answer and Sussane makes way for Bhanupriya,a spectacle in an orange sari.

Sussane and the 34 other Kolkata contestants of the Indian Super Queen have managed a complete transition— from man to woman—at least in their minds. “I didn’t bother dressing in a gown or a sari today. I’m wearing a simple jeans and shirt. That’s because I don’t need to wear a woman’s attire to feel like a woman,” says Aparna,who runs a boutique in South Kolkata.

“That’s exactly what we want,” says Laxmi Narayan Tripathi who conceived and organized this 10-city event in association with VCare company. “We don’t want Politically correct,Miss India answers. We are looking for honest,hard working individuals who have the spunk and the charisma to be representatives of the transgender community of India,” adds Tripathi. Three participants each from 10 Indian cities will be taken Mumbai for the finals of the event where the participants will be groomed to become “ambassadors for the hijra community”.

But for the Sussanes and the Bhanupriya’s of the city,the opportunity to participate in such an event is a “dream come true”. “As a kid I would enact the crowning moment of a beauty pageant winner in front of the winner countless number of time. I’m getting to wear these glamorous clothes and will sashay down the ramp in a few minutes. I’m truly living my dream today,” smiles Koel before the emcee of the event announces her name.