International Conference on Recent Trends in Humanities, Education, Arts, Culture, Languages, Literature, Philosophy, Religion, Gender and Management Studies (HEALM-2019) STEREOTYPICAL REPRESENTATION OF MARGINALIZED TRANSGENDER CHARACTERS IN INDIAN CANON Paridhi Chaudhary Research Scholar, Amity Institute of English Studies and Research, Amity University, Noida E-mail:
[email protected] ABSTRACT—Transgenders have been a part of Indian society and During the kingships and before British ever came to Indian culture for a long time but with time and by the advent of Britishers grounds, the hijras enjoyed a grand status in the society. They into India, their status declined. Transgenders are being called from were considered as loyal servants, brave soldiers, and even different names in India like hijras, eunuchs, thirunangai etc. The better strategists. They were seen as assets to an empire and people of this community face discrimination in all spheres of life and helped keenly in the functioning and security matters. They enjoy few to no basic rights even. This paper would focus on the stereotypical depiction of transgender characters which is floating were kept with the queens and princesses and looked after around Indian main-stream cinema, television as well as Indian them. One such character is of Neemat as shown in the movie English Literature and the result that these stereotypes lead to in the Jodhaa Akbar (2008) directed by Ashutosh Gowariker. lives of the transgenders who are treated even worse than animals. Neemat has been shown as concern servant to the queen and Being ‘different’ from the basic binaries set by the society gives them enjoys the same lifestyle as that of other women who reside in a unique status which should be accepted and appreciated but barely the queen’s palace.