Husband And Wife, Both Above The Age Of 90, Adopt A Trans Couple In Chandigarh

To have a loving family that gives you a sense of comfort and security is a dream of many. Sometimes we take birth in one, but then there are times when we are blessed with it later in life. Either way, its presence shapes us and nurtures us. Similarly, Dhananjay Chauhan and Rudra Pratap Singh, a transgender couple found their loving family, in the form of an elderly couple in Chandigarh.

Chauhan and Singh were recently adopted by 93-year-old Shamsher Kaur Chahal and 95-year-old advocate Darbara Singh Chahal. “Back home in Lucknow, my family, especially my brother, could not accept that I was no longer Mitali, but Rudra. It was difficult for them to accept me as a man and they continued to address me with female pronouns, which causes dysphoria. But here, I can be myself in a family set up and live freely,” said Rudra, who comes from Lucknow and works with a multinational corporation.

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Transgender couple adopted: Find new parents

Dhananjay Chauhan was in news in 2020, when she became the first Punjab University's first transgender student. Chauhan, who also works for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community had to leave her family's house after they were subjected to discrimination due to her gender identity. The family projected the hate that they received on Chauhan, which led to bullying and harassment.

In an interview with SheThePeople, Chauhan had previously revealed that she was even forced to take conversion therapy and the quacks used to burn her skin and beat her up under the guise of treating her. “Log alag ko galat samajhte hain…Badlaav aayega…but saal aur langege (People find different to be wrong, change will come but it will take more years),” she, said summing up her experience.

The couple used to live in a slum area and had to beg in order to make their ends meet. During the lockdown, Chauhan connected with the elderly couple's daughter Samira Kosar, who used to study Kathak with her. Samira, who works as a deputy registrar at Pracheen Kala Kendra, encouraged Chauhan to take up dancing again, which she had to leave after coming out as a transgender person. It was then that Chauhan told her about her living situation.

Kosar spoke to her parents and sister about it and as a result, the elderly couple decided to adopt Dhananjay Chauhan and Rudra Pratap Singh, without a care about what those around them might say.

Speaking about their decision to adopt the couple, Shamsher Kaur Chahal said, "We were living alone in a big house. Now, these children take care of us, and there is never a dull moment with them around." According to her, more elderly people in society need to shed their biases and adopt transgender people who do not have families to call their own. This will help people from the transgender community get acceptance in society, and keep them safe from harassment as well.

Image Credit: Hindustan Times