On the streets of Indian villages one sometimes comes across an unusual sight of a group of closely shaven persons in female attire, singing and dancing, making overtures to the onlookers, cracking sexually charged jokes at men and making loud clapping sounds with their hands. To people these individuals may look very interesting and outlandish freaks of nature. Not because they sing and dance but because of their ambivalent physical appearance. They shave, smoke and talk like men but dress and behave in a more feminine way. On seeing them, one question which would immediately strike relates to who are these people, male or female? And if they are neither males nor females, then what? In the Indian society these peoples are popularly referred to as ‘Hijras’, ‘Khusras’, ‘Asexuals’, ‘Neutrals’, ‘Eunuchs’, etc. All the terms included in the nomenclature are used to describe the identity of these people who have one thing in common and perhaps the most decisive one that there is something wrong with their sexual organs. So one can say that, for years we have looked at Hijras, but never seen or understood them.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.