Meet the lone trans student who passed the Tamil Nadu Class X Board examination

A Nivetha, the only transgender student to write the Class X Board examination in Tamil Nadu, passed the exam. Though the student of Lady Willingdon Higher School scored only 42.4%, her marks are nothing short of an achievement, as the journey so far hasn't been easy for her.

When Nivetha came out as a transwoman before her parents at the tender age of 14, she wasn't ready to wage a lone and long war. "I was born as Ranjith and was the elder son of my parents. Like other parents, they too had a lot of expectations from their son, even more so as they are poor. They were traumatised when I told them I am a transgender. There were a lot of fights as they were not ready to accept me and I had to leave my home one day," said 18-year-old Nivetha, whose parents work as daily wage labourers.

However, her parents are happy now, as Nivetha has passed Class X. "I informed my parents about my results and they were very happy. I want to pursue Science stream and make my career in this stream," said Nivetha.

"Since childhood, I liked wearing bangles of my mother and draping her sarees, but when I was in Class IX I was not able to continue as a boy. It was the most difficult phase of my life. I had to discontinue my studies also for some time after coming out," said Nivetha. She also had to experience stigma and life quickly turned upside down.

"A neighbour gave me the address of a transgender living in Triplicane, Sambhavi akka (another transgender), who helped me resume studies. I stay with her and she also takes care of my expenses," shared Nivetha. She also credits her teachers and friends at Lady Willingdon for her success. "Nobody ever made fun of me at school. All teachers were very cooperative," said Nivetha.