Anjali Ameer Makes Indian Movie History

Like here in the States, Bollywood has also used male actors to portray trans women

This is old news, but when the bilingual film (Tamil and Malayalam) Peranbu (it's Tamil language title) debuts later this year with Indian film superstar Mammootty in the lead role,  it will have for the first time ever in the history of Indian cinema a trans woman playing a female role.

The person tapped to make that Indian cinematic history is Anjali Ameer   Born in Kerala into an orthodox Muslim family, transitioned in her teens and kept her trans status non disclosed as she started her modeling career until she was dropped from a TV show.  

"Acting was a passion for me," said Ameer in an India Times interview. "As a kid, I used to take part in youth festivals. I feel that acting is the best I can do to bring out my personality."  

The model was suggested to director of the movie Ram by Mammootty, and  Ameer is thrilled to be in her first film with one of India's greatest and most well known actors.

"It was a great experience working with people like Mammootty and director Ram," said Ameer.  To get a character with such a team was a great learning experience.  Initially I was intimidated, but Mammootty encouraged me throughout the shoot."

Ameer also made it clear she doesn't want to be considered just a trans artist.   She is an actress who just wants to try her luck in Bollywood and if a great role comes along, she's ready to play it.

Actress Ivory Aquino Comes Out As Trans

I know I have some amazing trailblazing trans people in my life that I'm also blessed enough to call my friends.   One of those people is Cecilia Chung, who I happily discovered has actress Ivory Aquino playing her in the upcoming ABC miniseries When We Rise scheduled to be broadcast on February 27.

The cool thing about the actress playing Cecilia in this miniseries is that she is a girl like us.

Ivory Aquino, who will play my homegirl in this ABC miniseries that is based on longtime gay activist Cleve Jones' memoir When We Rise: My Life In The Movement chronicling the TBLGQ rights movement in San Francisco., recently came out as trans.

The 26 year old transpinay always knew she wanted to act, but initially gave up on that dream because she felt there was no place in Hollywood or the acting world for someone like her.

Interestingly enough, when she auditioned for the role of Cecilia,, producer Dustin Lance Black was pissed at casting because they hadn't found any trans actresses for the role, and he was determined to cast a trans person in it.  

Aquino came out publicly for the first time during the recent Television Critics Association conference.  She tearfully said in an interview that she can hardly believe that she's part of this project.

"You spend your whole life dreaming of these things,"she said. "And it's really humbling when your dreams come true."  

Looking forward to seeing you play Cecilia when this miniseries airs February 27-March2

Black Trans History-Ajita Wilson

Stumbled across an interesting piece of Black trans history while searching for something trans related to write about.   It concerns the surprising note that cult film actress Ajita Wilson was a trans woman.   But then again, why should I be surprised about what I discover when it comes to women like us?

It's simply another fascinating piece of Black trans history that I'm bringing to your attention.     

She was born in Brooklyn, New York around 1950 and started out as a female illusionist and entertainer in New York's red light district   She had her sex realignment surgery in the mid 1970's and not long after that occurred began appearing in underground adult films being produced in the New York area. 

She was discovered by a European film producer who got her roles in French, Italian, Greek and Spanish films.  By 1978 Wilson had built up quite a following and name recognition in doing so.  
She appeared in a seemingly nonstop series of films during the 1970s and 1980's that ranged from soft and hardcore porn films to mainstream horror, light comedy, anachronistic historical epics and espionage thrillers.  

Interestingly enough one of the people she worked with during her film career was The Exorcist actress Linda Blair in the movie Savage Island.

To add another interesting note to this post about her, she was a Jet Magazine pin up girl.  Ajita Wilson appeared in the August 20, 1981 issue of the iconic Jet Magazine as their Beauty of The Week    That may make her possibly the first trans woman to hold that distinction.

While her acting career was still going strong and in a positive direction for her she was involved in a horrific automobile accident in Rome, Italy.   She passed away from a brain hemorrhage on May 26, 1987 that resulted from that accident.

After Wilson's death, speculation about her trans status began to emerge.  When director Carlos Aured was asked to comment on it, he said this in reply.to the interviewer's question.

"She was charming, beautiful and very professional. The rest is not important." he said. 

Indeed.  Ajita Wilson was as director Aured said, charming, beautiful and professional as an actress.  But I'd disagree about the second part of his comment.  

In that time period there were very few out Black transfeminine role models.  While I understand what the transition protocols were at that time and she was a product of that era, it sure would have been nice to know that Ajita Wilson was also a girl like us, too.