ਕੀ ਜਾਣਾ ਮੈਂ ਕੌਣ? کی جانا میں کون؟ (Don’t know who am I?) a novel by Rana Harpinder is a novel which our mother tongue (ਮਾਂ ਬੋਲੀماں بولی) Punjabi needed, a story which has been missed out for centuries. It is the story of trans struggle and transpersons, referring to themselves as Khwaja Siras, Hijras.
There is another home, another belief system, another way of life, another dialect and another Punjab that is found in the communes (ਡੇਰਾ ڈیرہ) of transpersons. The novel is a deep dive into those communes, the reader learns about the hierarchies, the broken dreams, the challenges, the moments wrapped in empathy, solidarity and love. American author Armistead Maupin (writer of Tales of the City) describes the concept of ‘logical family’ in his novels, he says that when the biological family rejects or is unable to catch up with our pace of evolution, we create logical families (chosen families) where the bonds are stronger than the biological family. The communes of transpersons are those historical spaces where the logical families are founded and they are cherished. They have their fair share of issues, not very different from the biological families. The novel is an exploration of the logical and biological family, juxtaposed with each other. It is also the tale of a quest of a biological family and its acceptance of trans identity with pride.
The characters of the novel question the inhuman norms of society, they ask for a fair share for their sisters and brothers. They welcome the legislative recognition of historical atrocities on their community and they critique the othering enshrined within that legislation. My favourite part was the description of Pride March in Chandigarh. Reading the description of the March in Punjabi is nothing less than a delight.
Maleccha 