About Kalki

Kalki is the Founder/Director of ‘Sahodari Foundation’ an organization working for the social and economic empowerment of transgender persons. A transgender rights activist, and a transsexual woman herself, Kalki holds two Master’s degrees - First one in Journalism and Mass Communication and the second in International Relations.

As a transgender person, she grew up with stigma and insult in schools and colleges where she pursued her studies, but that had only made her as a strong person. She fiercely campaigns for social, political, and economic equity and rights of Transgenders. Only knowledge and education can cure the blindness called ignorance. Kalki’s vision is to empower the transgender community socially and economically. She works with in the community.

Through Sahodari, she works with in the transgender community on several issues, for example, by creating empowerment programmes like entrepreneurship training which can positively change the poor transgender people’s livelihood choices – a life away from begging, a life with dignity. With the public, she advocates against transgender discrimination and hatred and voices for inclusion of transgender people at all levels. She has lectured in numerous colleges and universities in India.

Recently, she launched the world’s first matrimonial website for transsexual women called Thirunangai.net

On the professional side, Kalki makes short documentary films and is also the editor of the Tamil magazine for transgender women called 'Thirunangai'. She works as an independent Media Specialist. She develops web based projects and is a script writer for documentary and animation films. She is currently working on the scripts of a play and a documentary film, both directed by her.

On February 21st 2009, Kalki was awarded the 'Lifetime Achievement Award' by the Lioness Club of Chennai in appreciation of her transgender rights advocacy work. She was also chosen by 'Ananda Vikatan' Tamil magazine as the 'Top Ten Nambikkaikal' (Youth hopes) for the year 2009. She is one among the three India women listed as Transsexual Successes in Transsexual Women’s Successes
Directory.

Read Kalki’s biography.
Read Kalki’s English blog.
Read Kalki’s Tamil blog.
View Kalki’s personal album.
View Kalki’s media appearances.

How to contact Kalki? Click here.