Imphal's trans-woman helps in getting trans-identity passports apart from setting up a grievance cell.

"He burned at the common crematorium The place where many women too burned when they died There he’s gone, leaving no legacy of his own gender.”, Khurai expresses in a poem written in dedication to her father who had passed away in 2015. Santa Khurai, severely abused and ridiculed mercilessly for being what she was as a child, is now a package of power, self-esteem and a ray of hope to many sailing in the same vessel. Let's get into the inspiring journey of activist Santa Khurai whose relentless efforts pushed the Manipur State Commission for Women (MSCW) to set up a grievance redressal cell for transgender women. 

Support Was Just An Expectation: 

Santa Khurai was born in Imphal in a conservative family. Though she was born a boy, she never identified herself as one. She knew that she was always a girl. She was enrolled in Don Bosco All Boys School in Imphal. However, she was all alone without any friends group. “Throughout all these years, I was alone — there was constantly staring and mocking, even during the assembly sessions at school. Tiffin breaks meant eating by myself in a corner,” says Khurai in an interview. She was not even supported by her parents and three elder sisters either but her two younger brothers understood her. In 2016, Khurai pooled up money through crowdfunding and underwent gender affirmation surgery. While she collected over $5000 in total, there were no donations from India. 

Experiences That Led To Activism: 

Santa Khurai, who underwent numerous struggles personally has, with great difficulty, set up the first beauty salon run by a trans person in Manipur. When asked in an interview about what drove her to set up a business, she said without hesitation or fumbling that "Money" was the sole reason.