What's in being a man or a woman?
Hema Vijay
30 September 2011
http://southasia.oneworld.net/opinioncomment/whats-in-being-a-man-or-a-woman (http://southasia.oneworld.net/opinioncomment/whats-in-being-a-man-or-a-woman)
Chennai: When Rose speaks, Tamil Nadu stops to listen. Perhaps it is the air of nonchalant confidence that she exudes, or it is her perceptive mind that dissects tangled and tricky issues, making them straight and simple. Rose's reasoning works. And the fact that she is not afraid to delve into any issue, be it workplace harassment, divorce, premarital sex or even the benefits of legalising prostitution, helps.
For some time now, Rose has been discussing social issues, sex, sexuality and superstitions on a popular FM station and on TV. Her show in Tamil, 'Rose Udan Pesungal' (Rose Speaks To You) on 92.7 Big FM has hundreds tuning in; she is the world's first transgender person to direct, produce and anchor a TV show – 'Ithu Rose Neram' ('This Is Rose's Time') on Kalaignar TV; she is India's first transgender talk-show host ('Ippadikku Rose' or 'As Said By Rose' on Vijay TV, 2008); she is an activist, and very soon will become a pop singer, music director, dancer and composer, too. Her album, Chocolate Rose – which she is producing simultaneously in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam – will soon be out.