Voice for the Jogappas, a community of transgenders

Bibijaan was christened Dawood when she was born into a Muslim family as a boy. At the age of 18, she left home to join the Jogappas — a subaltern community of transgenders — and became a devotee of goddess Yellamma. While narrating her story after a power-packed performance at Sitara studio, where she shared the stage with Carnatic vocalist TM Krishna and four other members of her community, Bibijaan spoke fondly of the once easy camaraderie between Hindus and Muslims in her village in Belgaon district.

"Before the 1992-93 riots, the women, regardless of their religious persuasion, used to wear nine-yard saris. Villagers used to help each other organise festivals. The communal atmosphere post Babri Masjid demolition destroyed the harmony. Gradually, women began wearing burqas and children were being sent to madrassas," she said.

As a child, she was greatly influenced by the beauty of Hindu goddesses. "I would try to wear my mother's saris for which I used to be thrashed by my family. I realised I was effeminate, but I was scared to leave home because I didn't have the courage to face an uncertain life," she said. After years, not only has the family come to terms with her religious and transgender identities, her father even gave her mother money to buy Bibijaan a sari.

In the gender-fluid world of the Jogappas, a person's religious background has little significance. This is not to say the community is not pious. Their music and lifestyle revolve around their devoutness and unflinching belief in the goddess Yellamma who is regarded as a form of Parvati or Shakti, the wife of Lord Shiva. They reside in north Karnataka and parts of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

The common thread running through the stories of these men-turned women — a person marries the goddess to become a woman — is the abuse they faced in their families. Tears well up in Lakshmi's eyes as she shares harrowing details of her life. "Due to my womanish attributes, I used to be bullied both by my family and outsiders. I suffered a lot of abuse before I was thrown out of home when I was 11. I went through a spell of hardship before joining the Jogappas." In her new life as Jogappa, she had to do menial jobs as there is a hierarchy in the group. What changed things for her was her voice. "I was asked to learn singing from a guruji who asked for gold jewellery as fees," she says. "I agreed to the terms and paid her back in gold by saving money." On stage, Lakshmi's powerful voice, gliding through two high scales, was astonishing, matched only by Siddamma, a Jogappa from Bijapur. But Lakshmi is special because she is also a composer. "I grew up listening to folk music, and it has permeated my songs. I work on the compositions while travelling from one village to another to perform and seek alms," she says.

The Jogappas have very few economic opportunities and singing-dancing is the only means of livelihood. The income is meagre. Bibijaan says she earns about Rs 50 a day. It is only when people invite her group to their homes for jagrata, a night-long invocational performance, the group gets Rs 1000-1200.

Performing in Mumbai is a dream come true. The unique musical collaboration between them and TM Krishna was organised by Solidarity Foundation and curated by Mumbai-based First Edition Arts. "We are grateful to Shubha Chacko of the Foundation for bringing us together. They chose the songs from my repertoire and we collaborated. All of us rehearsed for eight days and a team was formed and now you have heard us sing," says Siddamma with a touch of pride.