22-year-old trans woman Heidi Saadiya made debut as TV news reporter in Kairali News TV, a Malayalam television channel.
The reportage on Chandrayaan-2 was her first assignment after she formally joined Kairali on August 31.
Heidi was the first trans woman to study in the Institute of Journalism run by Thiruvananthapuram Press Club.
Heidi was born in a Muslim family at Chettuva in Thrissur and life was normal for her until she revealed her identity after her undergraduate course.
At the age of 10, she realized changes in her and at the age of 16 she revealed it to her parents. When she was pursuing BCom at Sreenivas College, Mangalapuram she came out and revealed it to the society and discontinued the course. Two years ago, Heidi underwent a sex reassignment surgery in Bengaluru.
At the age of 18, Heidi Saadiya left her house as her parents refused to accept her identity as a transgender woman.
“I tried calling my parents almost every day for two years but they refused to talk to me. In fact, they verbally abused me so much that, today, I am terrified to call them,” Heidi told The News Minute.
“My mother wanted me to be a journalist. That is one of the reasons I chose this profession. They might be happy seeing me on television. I want to fight for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community through journalism”
Heidi
Heidi is confident that her parents will, one day, realise that their child is living her dream.
