Sharanya Ruia Champions the rights of LGBT Community

Sharanya Ruia, a student of The Cathedral and John Connon School, has taken up the cause of championing the rights of transgender in India.

With a mission to create gender inclusive spaces, Sharanya kick-started sensitisation workshops in several corporate and retail establishments across the country.

She now partners with the country's first gay, community-based organisation, the Humsafar Trust, to present a pioneering play at Phoenix Marketcity, Kurla. Titled 'Ek Madhav Baug' the play stars Mona Ambegaonkar in the lead and tells the story of a young boy coming to terms with his homosexuality and the resistance he faces from the community.

With a mission to create awareness, understanding and acceptance of the issues faced by the community Sharanya began this movement by working with staff members, retail workers, employees and security personnel across the malls of the High Street Phoenix umbrella to begin with and later will work toward spreading this across other establishments with a focus on hospitals.

 

Another powerful program Sharanya has initiated is to assist transgenders with a direct action campaign that aims to advocate for and secure fundamental rights for them a program to facilitate the process of changing gender status on government standard ID proof such as driving licenses and Aadhaar cards.

She has conducted 4 gender sensitisation workshops with over 150 attendees so far and has 4 - 2 in Mumbai, 1 in Pune ad 1 in Bengaluru so far with more workshops in the pipe-line.

"Transgender people face severe rejection and discrimination from people across the country. This day to day problem that they face is a very basic violation of a fundamental human right that every citizen of our country deserves as their birth right. They are often stopped from entering public spaces, shops, malls and other places. Most of this stigma has to do with unawareness of the impact of this negative emotion that is always meted out to them. I want to work with staff members at varying levels and sensitize them about the transgender people and about ensuring they are all respected the way any other person would be. I am certain more people will change their attitude towards transgender people and be more accepting, loving and respecting on the whole", said Sharanya.

With this play Sharanya brings greater attention to the discrimination and confusion faced by the broader LGBT community. Phoenix Marketcity Kurla supports Sharanya Ruia's steps to make the world a friendlier place for the LGBTQ community.

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