Due to high levels of stigma, many are forced out of conventional education and employment, resulting in high rates of poverty, with many resorting to begging or prostitution to survive.
Seema Kumar, a transgender woman from Mumbai, described being abandoned, homeless, and facing abuse before finding work in a beauty salon. Progress and Legal Recognition shemale story india
Transgender activist Abhina Aher described her experience of transitioning as a painful physical and psychological transformation, saying, "I just wanted to become a beautiful butterfly". Due to high levels of stigma, many are
Hijras are frequently born male but live in traditionally feminine ways, often rejecting the binary of man or woman. Due to high levels of stigma