This Transwoman Has Found Her Dignity By Using Jallikattu As A Powerful Weapon

S Sinthamani is a 30-year-old transwoman from the village of Kallanai village in Alanganallur block, Tamil Nadu. She is ruling the roost in the old traditional sport of Jallikattu and is getting the respect and dignity she deserves.

"My three jallikattu bulls earned me the respect and dignity that were robbed from me at the age of 15 when I came out in the open regarding my gender identity,¡± she said.

According to a report in The New Indian Express, Sinthamani had an interest since childhood to rear jallikattu bulls but poverty prevented her.

EPS

That changed in 2017 when after the protests, she became the owner of a bull ¡®Karuppu¡¯, which she got for free from someone she knew in Kodikulam who could raise it. In 2019 she bought Ramu for Rs 40,000 at from Tiruchy district. Then came Lakshmi.

Ramu made his debut and reaped good rewards, but tragedy struck.

¡°Tragedy struck us during the lockdown as Ramu died of snakebite in May. Due to the prohibitory orders, he could not be given a grand farewell, as per the custom for jallikattu bulls here. Ramu¡¯s demise is no less than the irreplaceable loss of a son,¡± she added.

PTI

¡°Karuppu is my elder son and the apple of my eye. He showers more love than any human could. He refuses to eat if I¡¯m not around. At night, his noose is always untied because he sleeps next to me. He waits no longer when he watches me unroll my mat to sleep in the cattle shed. Grieving the loss of Ramu, Karuppu starved for about 15 days. It took a lot of effort to make him bounce back,¡± she added.

¡°My bulls earned me respect among the villagers who, until a few years ago, passed lewd comments, hurled abuses, misbehaved, and even thrashed me several times due to my gender identity.¡±

She hails from a family of agricultural labourers and has an elder brother and sister.