From 'Mohammed to Maya': A Spiritual Transition
Avni Nijhawan, Staff Reporter
Jun 18, 2012
http://indiawest.com/news/5053-from-mohammed-to-maya--a-spiritual-transition.html (http://indiawest.com/news/5053-from-mohammed-to-maya--a-spiritual-transition.html)
Growing up in India, the only person who knew Mohammed Jafer's true identity was a Buddhist monk: "I see the woman in you," he said, "and I want to call you Maya because I see a lot of love in you."
But the 42-year-old — now Maya, who said the name means "love" — from Tamil Nadu always knew she was a woman, even if virtually no one else did.
"I am a woman in a man's body ..." she said, referring to how she felt before she began her transition to physically become a woman. "I was trying to fix everything else, until I realized I have the option inside me."
That's the story a new documentary, called "Mohammed to Maya," tells as it follows Maya, a male-to-female transgender individual, in a physical and spiritual journey into womanhood that pushes the limits of tradition.