We all read about the Queer movement in the newspapers. But, how much do we all really know about this movement and those involved in it? Recently, I read an extrordinarily moving book by A.Revathi, "The Truth About Me". The book doesn't have any passages that make us feel guilty about our treatment of sexual minorities. It doesn't have anything philosohical or even something hideously horrific in it. It's just a book about the day-to-day life of the writer. Yes, it is autobiographical. But, like many autobiographies, this one does not have a story filled with anguish. Revathi tells us about all the joys and sorrows of being born a man and living as a woman.Oh yes. This is a book that tells us both of the hardships and the rewards of living among and as transgenders.
On the coverpage of the book, is the picture of a woman, sitting infront of an old,dilapidated house. Not for one second will you think that this woman was actually a man for half her life. As you read the book, you get sucked into Revathi's life. You celebrate within yourself, for her small victories and you shed a tear or two, for all the pain and humiliation she suffers.
This book is no work by a Shakespearean talent. It's a simple book, written by a simple person, with no jargon, no flowery language or flow of complicated emotions.
The thing I realised while reading the book, was, Revathi wasn't accepted by society for who she was, because, society was scared. No, not of her, but of her courage. Scared of the guts she had for not letting anyone or anything come in her way of living her life, of owning it, on her own terms. Revathi is a beautiful woman, who just happend to be born in the wrong body. She had to suffer at the hands of time and fate, for this one error. Other than that, she is a beautiful, strong person, capable of surviving on her own. She too has desires like the rest of us, but, she has to work a lot harder to convert them into reality.
In all, this book is a good read, for it speaks of the unspoken desires within all of us. This book is not just about Revathi, but thousands like her, who are still in slumber within their cocoons, waiting for their wings to form and let them fly.
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AGNI
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