Manabi Bandyopadhya, India’s first transgender college principal, fought the odds but her war is far from over
These days, Manabi Bandyopadhya does not mind if someone taunts her for being a transgender. About 14 years ago, she chose to become a woman. Today she is head of a government-run college, something Bengali society finds hard to accept.
Ever since she was made principal two years ago, Manabi has been subject to insult, defamation and a barrage of allegations. “Even Swami Vivekananda had to face insults when he ventured to set up Belur Math,” said Manabi, 54. “He went from door to door and begged. A courageous, handsome, educated man was seeking help from the people. How could society accept that? When such a personality was insulted and vilified, who am I?”
Born Somnath to a middle-class family in Naihati, a suburb outside Kolkata, Manabi underwent sex change in 2003 when she was a lecturer at Jhargram Raj College. She was forced to vacate the college hostel when teachers asked her to behave like a man.
Denne historien er fra January 07, 2018-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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Denne historien er fra January 07, 2018-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus
RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
