Being A ‘Kothi’: An Ethnographic Interrogation with A Male Transgender in Kolkata, India

The present paper gives light on a self-disclosed male transgender locally known as ‘Kothi’ from Kolkata in India. Data have been collected from two brief interviews held with an interval. The researcher, who is also the storyteller and narrative analyst, is responsible for the story structure by locating central themes, sequencing life events, and organizing the time span. The focus includes the self-perceptions of an individual male transgender, his sexual orientation and relationships, and the manner in which he lives his ‘other’ gendered life in a hegemonic hetero-normative society. While this case is obviously not representative of all transgender of India, it does briefly illustrate the kinds of experiences that confront a male transgender. The narratives also indicate how the expression of a gender variance can sustain and resist in an apparently closed system. Key wordsTransgender, Kothi, Sexuality, Sexual behaviour.