{"product_id":"the-yellow-sparrow-memoir-of-a-transgender-9789354474156","title":"The Yellow Sparrow Memoir of a Transgender","description":"\u003cp\u003eSanta Khurai was seventeen when she decided to start dressing like a woman.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBorn male, she had always believed herself to be female, and she claimed her\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003efeminine identity fiercely and openly. Her bold act of wearing dresses and makeup\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ein public brought down upon her the wrath of her father, insults and ridicule\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ewherever she went, and, frequently, beatings at the hands of the armed forces\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ewho are a constant presence in her native Manipur. The humiliation and physical\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eattacks did not deter her. In her words, 'My desire to be a woman, a beautiful, \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003efashionable woman, was so strong that I was not afraid of challenging anything\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ethat came in the way... I felt that I could bear anything but I could not live like a\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eman.'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe price she has had to pay is high. Knocking on doors for a job, she found that\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003emost times, no one would employ her because of the way she looked. When she\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eeventually found success as a make-up artist, with her own beauty parlour, the\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003estress of her struggles sent her spiralling into drug abuse and penury.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFighting her way through these troubles, she became involved with the\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003etransgender movement, and in 2010, she was appointed Secretary of the All\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eManipur Nupi Maanbi Association (AMaNA). Since then, she has worked closely\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ewith AMaNA and its sister organization, Solidarity and Action Against The\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHIV Infection in India (SAATHII). Today, she is at the forefront of the LGBTQ\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003emovement in Manipur, travelling the world to speak for her community.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSanta Khurai has known the heartbreak of an abusive marriage with a\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eheterosexual man, and the joy of adopting a son; the highs and lows of\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003einternational recognition and disownment by her own family. Through it all, \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eshe has remained true to herself, and refused to be broken. Her story is an\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003einspiration for all humanity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Speaking Tiger Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50661362696466,"sku":"9789354474156","price":25.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_d00dbbd1-82c7-4a5c-849b-4f285d014d81.jpg?v=1733493389","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-yellow-sparrow-memoir-of-a-transgender-9789354474156","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}