Vetri Award for Narthaki Nataraj
Posted on: 29/Jan/2013 5:41:23 PM - No. of views : (7085)
Eminent danseuse, Narthaki Nataraj received the Vetri Award from Mr. K.P Aravanan, former Vice-Chancellor of Manonmani Sundaranar University in Tirunelveli. The award which is instituted by the University of Madras was given to Ms. Nataraj for her commitment to Bharatanatayam and her bravery to fight for the rights of transgenders.
Ms. Nataraj, who is herself a transgender, was born in Madurai and soon transformed herself from a man to her true calling � a female dancer. She is a recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in addition to other prestigious ones.
�I became a dancer for my identity and I continue to dance for my soul�, she said. Speaking about her fight for trangender rights she said, �Aravani was one such term which found its way to government documents. I raised this issue at several government meetings and during the former DMK regime, they agreed to delete `Aravani` and use "Thiru Nangai` in all official documents.�
