Nepal's gay rights movement: Personal perspectives
http://www.livinggaynepal.info/story.html (http://www.livinggaynepal.info/story.html)
JYOTI Thapa's feminine features are distinct: her twinkling brown eyes, slender nose pierced with a shiny nose stud and long, black hair add prominence to her slim, well-maintained figure. As she takes a ten-minute walk uphill from a grocery store to her house at Sipadol Village Development Committee in the outskirts of Nepal's capital Kathmandu, Thapa meets and greets neighbours. In return, they reply in a typical Nepali way referring to her using the word nani, a colloquial term of endearment reserved for women.
However, Thapa is a man.
The 30-year-old is among many Nepalis who identify themselves as third gender, who do not classify themselves as male or female, or opts for a different gender identity to what they were assigned during birth. Thapa is also among an estimated 3.5 million-plus people who are a part of Nepal's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex (LGBTI) movement that has gained momentum in the new Himalayan republic.