Trans woman Renjumol Mohan, a second-year undergraduate student of Kathakali at Kerala’s RLV College of Music and Fine Arts, Tripunithura, performed her arangettam on November 10. Arangettam is the first performance of a student of Indian classical dance. According to Kathakali exponents, this is the first performance of the art form by an ‘out’ trans person.
"I performed Lord Krishna. I have been waiting for this moment for a while and my heart is filled with gratitude," says Renjumol, who joined RLV College with the support of Kerala Transgender Students Scholarship Scheme. According to the scheme, the government is to pay Rs 20,000 towards course fee and Rs 40,000 per year for accommodation.
While sharing the joy of her dream-come-true, Renjumol reveals that she is yet to receive the course fee promised by the state government. “The Rs 40,000 in rent will be transferred to the house owner every year. However, I have not received the course fee from the government yet," Renjumol says. She currently makes a living doing sex work.
Renjumol joined the RLV college in 2021, and says that her campus has received her with warmth. Before she joined the course, Renjumol spoke to Kalamandalam Radhakrishnan, the head of the Kathakali department at RLV, about her life and struggles. The department assured her of its support and encouraged her to join the course. "My college, teachers, and classmates are my biggest support system. Till date, I have not felt any discrimination here," she says, during a break in the first stage of make-up pachcha (green facial paint denoting divine characters).
Renjumol preparing for her performance
For her arangettam, Renjumol performed Lord Krishna in Purapadu, an opening segment that preludes a Kathakali performance, along with three of her classmates. "I am proud of myself for who I have become. I feel utmost contentment upon performing Kathakali,” she says. She adds, “I have always fought for my rights without harming, hurting, or depending on anyone. I have had hardships in life. But today, I prefer to look at the brighter side."
Renjumol was earlier an employee of the Kochi Metro. However, she faced difficulties with the agency that had recruited her and was laid off. "We were not government staff but employees of a company that works for Kochi Metro. After losing the job, I survived by begging in railway stations and trains. Later, I got a job at a transgender shelter home project in Kottayam, but it was stalled. Now I do sex work," says Renjumol.
Renjumol performing arangettam along with her classmates
Renjumol had mastered the art of Ottanthullal, a recite-and-dance artform from Kerala, at a very young age. "I have learnt Ottanthullal since childhood and have performed on various stages across the state. I have also won many prizes in state-level competitions during school and college. My father was very encouraging about it," she says. She has also played an Ottanthullal artiste in Parayan Maranna Kathakal, a play by a transgender theatre group from Kerala.
The Thalayolaparambu-native left her town and settled in Kochi after her parents’ demise. She came out as a trans woman in 2015. She had earlier attended an undergraduate course in geography. However, Kathakali has always been her dream. "All I want now is to complete my course, do a masters in Kathakali and then pursue a PhD. I want to make Kathakali my career," she sums up.