Celebrating resilience and remembering those we have lost: TDOR, 2019

Baruipur is a small town in 24 Parganas district, famous for its sweets and kebabs, around ten kilometres from Kolkata. Suvana has made this town her home for over fifteen years. She first arrived here as a part of Manas Bangla, an organization for trans folks.She found home in Baruipur with her friends from the community. The room where she lives in now, has over the years become a safe space for koti/trans folks to organize, laugh and cry together. The community in smaller towns often feel left out of conversations about trans rights compared to folks in bigger cities like Kolkata. ASRAI was formed by Suvana and her friends to be able to provide shelter and support to the community. 

Transgender Day of remembrance is observed annually on November 20, in memory of those we have lost. It was founded by Gwendolyn Ann Smith in memory of Rita Hester, a trans woman of colour murdered in 1999.  Since 2010,TDOR is celebrated all over the world in memory of trans folks of colour.  

Samobhabona collaborated with ASRAI to celebrate Transgender day of remembrance,2019 in Baruipur. It was a day we remembered our koti/hijra and trans sisters we have lost to violence. Suvana opened the event by paying respect to those who are no longer with us but their efforts have paved the way for future generations to live freely. For trans folks, living their own lives is a form of activism. “We remember those who through their personal struggles have taught us how to live. We now feel that we have a certain freedom, but this freedom has come through years of struggle from these people’, said Suvana. She also insisted that we give respect to those we lost by celebrating the resilience of the community. “Those who are no longer with us have taught us to stand up for each other and find strength through community ”,she added. She also insisted that young trans folks should learn to love themselves above all and find strength from their friends.

 Raina from Samobhabona, spoke about building alternative families and support systems within the community. She paid her respects to the many activists of Baruipur who have paved the way for many grassroots trans movements. She highlighted the importance of the trans movement to be intersectional, especially in such politically tumultuous times. 

Sayan elucidated further on the current political situation and the importance of such events to celebrate the trans community. They also said that the event was a perfect example of how the community perseveres in times of tragedy and holds itself together.  

Diyasha, a young fashion designer and activist, said that we should keep their memories alive in ourselves and continue to live and persevere. The smiles that she could see in the audience held an immense amount of tragedy and sadness and was a testament to the strength of this community. She urged everyone to continue to support and care for each other. 

Suphee, sex worker and activist spoke about the importance of loving and living for yourself. 

Everyone held a minute of silence in memory of all those we have lost from our community. Upasana, artist and activist, played a slideshow of all the folks who had passed. 

Friends of those departed remembered them with tears in their eyes. 

Two short films were screened, one was about a trans masculine person navigating the Delhi Metro and the other was about a trans woman finding love and desire. 

Suvana performed an original poem in Bangla in which she spoke of her journey as a trans activist.

Pallabi, one of the country’s first trans woman drivers is also a very talented singer. She performed a nazrul giti for the audience. 

Shukdeb and Anupama presented a dance performance which spoke about self love and friendship within the community.

Four non binary and trans teenagers started the Avantipur Own Foundation as an outlet for their talent. Through their dance performance they narrated the journey of young trans folks learning to love themselves. They ended the event with rendition of ‘Happy’ where they encouraged community members to join in. The performance was symbolic of the resilience of the community and their ability to find happiness within themselves.

Members Avantipur Own Foundation performing interpretative dance to celebrate, explore identity and grieve those we have lost.

illustration by Nandini Moitra

The event ended with a candlelight vigil through the streets of Baruipur.