Daily Times

DHAKA: A news channel in Bangladesh broke stereotypes creating history by hiring country’s first ever transgender news anchor.

Tashnuva Anan Shishir, a rights activist who previously worked with NGOs supporting transgender people and migrants, read her first three-minute daily news bulletin for a private television channel on Monday on International Women’s day.

Tashnuva began her journey as a news anchor at a private TV station, Baishakhi Television.

I worked as a voice artist for so long. So, my pronunciation was almost right,’’ she added.

She got in touch with Baishakhi TV following a suggestion from renowned director Chayanika Chowdhury.

Shishir said that her success did not come overnight. “When I was in the final year of post-graduation studies, my hormone began to develop. My hair was getting longer. So, I stopped attending classes. A teacher of my department described me as mentally sick in front of the entire class,” Tashnuva said disappointingly.

“I am the first Bangladeshi transgender individual to hold a Master’s degree in public health,” she continued said.

Talking about the bullying she had to face, she added “The bullying was so unbearable I attempted suicide four times. My father stopped talking to me for years”.

She fled her home in a southern coastal district to live alone in the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, and then in the central city of Narayanganj.

There she underwent hormone therapy, worked for charities and acted in the theatre, all the while keeping up her studies.

Tashnuva has been involved with modelling and acting for a long time. In 2007, she began her acting career with the theatre troupe Natua.