"Hai binti, ab toh kar lo, humari insaanon main ginti": say India's transgender community during lockdown

As there's no official statistic about the community members, the required aid isn't reaching them during pandemic.

One of the worst things that can happen to anyone is to be forgotten. You feel as if nobody remembers you, or cares about you. It breaks your heart, and can lead you into a maze of mental and physical ailments.

It's what has happened to India's transgender community during lockdown. There are no official statistics about them, and as a result, the required aid isn't reaching them.

They depend on daily ‘Bakshish’ (money in exchange for blessings) for their livelihood. But during these times of distress, they can't even step out to fend for themselves.

Posted by Phool Versha Foundation on Sunday, May 31, 2020

"Hai binti, ab toh kar lo, humari insaanon main ginti," says the voice-over in MullenLowe Lintas' ad film for Phool Versha Foundation. Scripted by Azazul Haque, CCO, MullenLowe Lintas Group, the film voices the anguish of the transgender community during lockdown. This line in the script best sums things up, "I also feel hungry, I am a human, too, death scares me, and I want to live, too."

Footage courtesy: A documentary Film “Nirvana”, directed by Jess Kohl, and produced by Pretty Bird Pic for NowNess.

Also Read: Lockdown in the closet? MullenLowe Lintas' new film explores...

This isn't the only work from the MullenLowe Lintas Group during Pride month (June). The group recently released a film voicing the minds and hearts of India's LGBTQIA community members. They've been in lockdown forever because they struggle with societal acceptance.

Different brands and agencies celebrate the lives and experiences of the LGBTQIA community during Pride month. The month also highlights the struggles the community still faces under society's rigid and indifferent lens.