Reimagining Identity: The Evolution of Transgender Representation in Indian Cinema

The representation of transgender characters in Indian cinema has undergone a profound transformation, reflecting broader societal changes in attitudes toward gender identity and sexuality. Historically, transgender characters in Indian cinema were often marginalised, depicted through stereotypes that perpetuated stigma and misunderstanding. Of course, this anxiety about engaging with flawed media representations does relate to legitimate concerns about everyday discourses of transphobia in which trans people are bullied and harassed –ranging from misgendering and deadnaming through to acts of physical violence (Richardson and Smith 3). Cinema can help people open their eyes to issues prevailing in society which might otherwise be ignored. Gender inequality is considered to be history’s most pervasive and universal form of injustice which becomes more evident in terms of transgender. This study delves into the problem of misrepresentations of identities of transgender through the discourse of cinema with a prime focus on Taali: Bajaungi Nhi, Bajwanugi. Taali is a web series which is a cinematic representation of Gauri Sawanth’s life experiences. This paper will look at the prior cinematic representation of transgenders in contrast to this series and how the larger norm of transgender operates. Furthermore, it aims to provide an insight into the remarkable journey of transgenders on the screen and how they shift into the centre from the periphery. The methodology used in this paper is Critical discourse analysis.

Keywords: Exclusion, Identity, Marginalisation, Misrepresentation, Resilience, Transgender