#a. revathi

[transbookoftheday]

Revathi - A Life in Trans Activism by A. Revathi and Nandini Murali

When Revathi’s powerful memoir, The Truth About Me, first appeared in 2011, it caused a sensation. Readers learned of Revathi’s childhood unease with her male body, her escape from her birth family to a house of hijras (the South Asian generic term for transgender people), and her eventual transition to being the woman she always knew she was. This new book charts her remarkable journey from relative obscurity to becoming India’s leading spokesperson for transgender rights and an inspiration to thousands.

Revathi describes her life, her work in the NGO Sangama, which works with people across a spectrum of gender identities and sexual orientations, and how she rose from office assistant to director in the organization. Today she is an independent activist, theatre person, actor and writer, and works for the rights of transgender persons.

In the second part of the book, Revathi offers the reader an insight into one of the least talked about experiences on the gender trajectory: that of being trans men. Calling several female-to-male trans persons her ‘sons’, Revathi puts before us their moving, passionate and sometimes tragic stories of marginalization, courage, resistance and triumph.

An unforgettable book, A Life in Trans Activism will leave the reader questioning the ‘safe’ and ‘comfortable’ binaries of male/female that so many of us take for granted.

[heykayhayes]

A few seasons of lovers...

My winter eladrin Gibbon du Hemlock shifts seasons to pursue different fake romances with wealthy people to con them out of their riches. He's horrible! :) Basically, if you're rich, he'll give romancing you + swindling you a shot. Revathi is a princess with a powerful connection to an Archfey. Marrying into the family would secure Gibbon a connection of his own and he'd have the power to create gold and all sorts of other things.

Hernando is a runaway prince who is close to death due to a magical sickness that is slowly corrupting his heart. Not long to wait for that one! Neither of those end up working out, sadly...BUT!

The very last one, a rich vampire named Domokos, turns out to be his well-earned karma by proving himself to be a life-long clinger whose murderousness and obsessiveness makes Gibbon's own insanity seem sane by comparison. They get married after Domokos turns Gibbon into a vampire to force their vows to truly be eternal. Good for them!

[exotic-indians]

[rikastrology]

nakshatras as art: revati

1. "After The Masked Ball" Heinrich Lossow

2. "The Lute Player" Hans Zatska

3. "The Storm" Pierre Auguste Cot

4. "Young Woman Resting in a Music Room" Alfred Stevens

[aka-diarmuid]

I was invited to join a more traditional ttrpg. My first big DND game and I’m so excited to bring Revathi and Dee into the adventure.

Revathi is a spring Eladrin and a princess who has been blessed by the Archfey Hauthtona, her patron. She feels the need to prove herself as a capable warrior and not a nepo baby. She is part of an adventuring party that’s trying to keep Tiamat from coming back and destroying the material plane.

[vishnavishivaa]

Saundarya: Seraphic Oneness (Trailer + Aesthetics)

This is a modern AU on NagnajitiKrishna, along with RevathiBalarama and UlupiArjuna.

*****

Manohar Vasudev

Kamalaa Srivatsan Iyengar

Trailer:

Manohar could feel something ancient awaken in His veins, something primal, beyond the human body, something intimately connected with the Soul, and for that moment, He felt the same from Her too, if Her parted pink lips and the widening of Her neelotpala eyes meant what He thought they did; surprise and knowing, a reflection of His own mixed emotions.

He was unsure what to think; He did not even know what He felt.

But He knew He was overwhelmed, that He felt too many things- who was She? Why did She awaken in Him something He had not felt before?

She was imprinted in Him. He rolled down His window, just to get a clearer look at Her, and it was exactly then that the traffic started to move slowly. He sighed, looking at Her as if to say sorry, before slowly driving away, watching Her for as long as He could, Her eyes never leaving Him either.

'Shankara, bless me so that She and I will meet again, and soon!'

****

Kamalaa could not forget those delightful dark brown eyes, like the soil of the rich earth, that had read her Soul that day. She even remembered those beautiful molten gold specks that danced all over His eyes, even from the distance, amidst heavy rain. The cold She had gotten due to dancing in the rain did not bother Her, but not knowing the identity of the man with the captivating eyes bothered Her.

She wanted to meet Him, get to know Him. Something about Him- it told Her clearly that He was the One.

The One She had always dreamt of.

Somehow, She just knew.

**************

@vibishalakshman @thelekhikawrites @celestesinsight @krishna-sahacharini @kaal-naagin @krishnapriyakiduniya @nirmohi-premika @chemicalmindedlotus @whippersnappersbookworm @sakhiiii @ambidextrousarcher @willkatfanfromasia @nspwriteups @dr-scribbler @rupkatha-banerjee @theramblergirl @hinsaa-paramo-dharma @moon-880 @thegleamingmoon @thereader-radhika @balladedutempsjadis @dr-scribbler Please let me know you thoughts, and do let me know if the rest of you want to be added to the list. 

[fishyyyyy99]

Mouna Ragam (1986) is a romantic drama that I really enjoyed. And this particular dialogue by the female protagonist, Divya, reminded me of Devi from Never Have I Ever (2020 - 2023):

Translation: "I have many flaws - anger, stubbornness, arrogance, ego. I am not responsible or caring - I have many flaws like these. I'm telling you this because you should know about me."

Just like Devi, Divya is a brave and flawed woman, who marches to the beat of her own drum. Her story is very different from Devi's. But, I just wanted to celebrate two complex, female protagonists who also happen to be Tamil (and who end up finding men who love them exactly as they are).

[shadowbrightshine]

Lady you stole that quote from Revathi Sankaran the Indian film actress.

-brought to you by my frantic search to find where the flying fazbear this quote is actually from for an essay because they just quote she said it and I cannot find where or when .

[wlwmoviebracket]

round 2 (35/64)

[indizombie]

If someone beats me, pinches me, scolds me, I hurt. I feel hungry, I have to eat, I have to cover my shame with clothes. I too need to be with my loved ones. I want their affection. I want to experience pleasure. I long for respect. I want to live a life of dignity. I want to go to work as many women do. But who gives people like me love? Or respect? Who offers us clothes to hide our shame? When I am hungry who feeds me? If I want all of this, what am I to do? Did I come with a mission at birth, wanting to be a pottai? Did my parents imagine I would be one, when I was born? I did not imagine that I would walk endlessly on several roads, begging, doing sex work. Who is responsible for what has happened to me? Did I take to this profession, because I wanted to? I did not choose this profession on my own. I wanted to live with a man. I did not get all that I needed for my everyday life. Men use me only for sex, they are unconcerned about all else. I do not desire to do sex work, but I had come to accept it as my destiny.

A Revathi, ‘The Truth about Me’

[binnte-dil]

Revathi in Tarpan तर्पण / The Absolution (K. Bikram Singh, 1995)

[moviespopcorn]

Salaam Venky Film Review

The pain of living life

Kajol and Vishal Jethwa in Salaam Venky Film Plot: This film tells the story of a boy who has a genetic disease called DMD (Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy) is a Degenerative Disease, which causes all of a person's organs to gradually stop functioning until he dies one day. The movie is called Salaam Venky, but the true title should have been Maa. The mother who watches her children struggle for their lives with this disease can only feel their suffering first-hand. The son wants to donate his organs and perform euthanasia, and she fights a legal battle for that as well, but she is unsuccessful. How long will her son be alive? Will he be put to death? You must watch the film to find out the answers to all of these questions. The film's theme and tone are emotional drama. Where the theme is struggle and fighting, which is based on hospital life, and there is a mixture of pain and sadness. The film's goal is to tell an audience a story based on a real-life event, not to provide them with entertainment. Character development and acting: Kajol did a fantastic job portraying Sujata Prasad. Kajol was the best candidate for this position. Seeing her son in this state causes the mother great pain and sadness, but she keeps these feelings to herself. In her acting, she has shown a different kind of mother on screen, a lonely, helpless and divorced woman who leaves her husband and daughter for her mentally ill child. Her spouse divorces her and expels her from the home. Although she did a great job, it was difficult for her to convey the anguish and suffering through her facial expressions, and she was seen acting the same in numerous scenes. Vishal Jethwa's acting being a highly emotional character, Venky has done an incredible job on screen portraying the themes of perseverance, overcoming obstacles, and holding onto hope until the very end. Playing a character like that is really tough, but she did it flawlessly. Her eyes seem to filled with pain and suffering that is very similar to real life. Ahana Kumara's acting in the role of Sanjana is also good. Rahul Bose's performance as Parvez Alam is likewise good. The performance of Rajeev Khandelwal as Doctor Shekhar is also excellent. The performances of the supporting actors also contribute to the plot's advancement. Direction: Actress Revathy is the film's director. She directed the movies Mitr My Friend(2002), Phir Milenge(2004), Kerala Cafe(2009) and Mumbai Cutting(2010) prior to this one. Despite receiving high praise from critics, neither of these movies became box office successes. However, Mitr My Friend In addition to winning the National Awards, Mitr My Friend screened at numerous film festivals. In this film also, she has shown the story very well on screen. The pace of the film is also fine. The direction of this film seems similar to her previous films. She films the story and tells it differently. She controls the entire movie. Furthermore, she did not let the story go off track at all. Story & Screenplay: Sammeer Arora wrote the screenplay, and Kausar Munir wrote the dialogues. The film is a little weak in the first half, but the screenplay is also a little weak. The cinematography by Ravi Varman is fantastic; the camera work and camera movements are good; the scenes with aerial views are well shot; the actors are well framed in every scene; the editing is done by Manan Sagar. The film could have been 15 to 20 minutes shorter; the pace is slow; the production design by Sandeep Sharad Ravade is good. the costumes of Radhika Mehra are also good; Mithoon has done a fantastic job; the music and lyrics all well composed and written. Climax: It's superb and heart-warming. Opinion: One-time watch! Those who enjoy emotional films. Flaws: The film made entirely commercial, even though the idea of parallel cinema was present. Aamir Khan's role was unnecessary; in the dream, he shown supporting his husband. Music and lyrics weren't necessary when making an emotional film. The film became overly spicy; it could have been a little shorter. Social message: Life is short; smile and let life be. Nobody can predict when someone will leave this world. This film inspired by an incredible true story of Kolavennu Venkatesh, The Story based on the book titled The Last Hurrah' by Shrikant Murthy. CBFC-U Movietime-2h.21mins Genre-Emotional Drama Release Year-9 December, 2022 Film Cast-Kajol, Vishal Jethwa, Prakash Raj, Anant Mahadevan, Rahul Bose, Rajeev Khandelwal, Riddhi Kumar, Aahana kumra, Mala Parvathi, Priya mani Raj, Kamal Sadanah, Introducing Aneet Padda with Aamir Khan Casting Director-Vaibhav Vishant, Costume Design-Radhika Mehra, Lyrics-Mithoon, Sandeep Srivtastav, Kausar Munir, Music-Mithoon Choreography-Pony Verma, Production Design-Sandeep Sharad Ravade, Sound Design-Tapas Nayak, Editor-Manan Sagar, Additional Screenplay and Dialogues-Kausar Munir, Adapted Story and Screenplay-Sammeer Arora, Cinematography-Ravi Varman, Producer-Suuraj Singh, Shraddha Agarwal, Varsha Kukreja , Director-Revathy Read the full article

[exotic-indians]

[vishnavishivaa]

Saundarya: Seraphic Oneness ( Ficlet #1)

Gazes Through Showers

Manohar had finally gotten an early release that day from work. He did work in His father’s company, but He had refused to be treated as someone special, insisting He climb the rung by Himself, especially if He was to become the Managing Director eventually. He wanted to see what every position offered to be able to improve the company as time went by. The pride on His father Vasudev and elder brother Halesh’s faces was more than enough for Him to know He had made the right decision regarding the company. But in that moment, all He really wanted was to go home to His Amma’s bhajjis and tea, relax next to her and talk about the happenings of the day, of dreams of the future. But here He was, caught in the rain, in this crazy, unmoving Bangalore traffic. Was there nothing… He sighed and turned on His playlist, shuffling His Tamil music playlist, hoping that some song that would suit the mood would appear somehow. “Venmathi venmathiye nillu,” the melancholy of love at first sight filled his car, and Manohar relaxed. This song perfectly set the mood, for the gloomy sky and the insane traffic gave Him the same vibes. He sang to himself softly, staring at the endless traffic and the dark rain clouds. Sometimes, He had seen his own complexion dance with the colour of the rain clouds. Rather, very often it had happened, and in recent days, even more so.

Every priest he has met in any temple He went to had told Him that His Divinity was like Vaasudeva Krishna's; that He was meant to change the world, but how could He without His other half by His side?

Manohar sighed softly, looking out His window, when the visual before Him made Him pause, and blink His eyes, repeatedly.

Was that... a young woman dancing in the rain? Amidst the thunder and lightning, all alone, though it felt like the rain was dancing with and around Her. Who was She? Why did She feel like someone intimately close to His heart?

"Jannalin vazhi, vandhu vizhundhadhu minnalin oli..." crooned His radio, as Manohar watched Her unblinking. Even the song sensed the thrumming of His heart and veins, it seemed. He peered more, making to lower the glass of His window, to take Her in better, when the sudden turn She executed in Her dance made Their eyes clash.

And the whole world stopped.

Manohar could feel something ancient awaken in His veins, something primal, beyond the human body, something intimately connected with the Soul, and for that moment, He felt the same from Her too, if Her parted pink lips and the widening of Her neelotpala eyes meant what He thought they did; surprise and knowing, a reflection of His own mixed emotions.

He was unsure what to think; He did not even know what He felt.

But He knew He was overwhelmed, that He felt too many things- who was She? Why did She awaken in Him something He had not felt before?

She was imprinted in Him. He rolled down His window, just to get a clearer look at Her, and it was exactly then that the traffic started to move slowly. He sighed, looking at Her as if to say sorry, before slowly driving away, watching Her for as long as He could, Her eyes never leaving Him either.

'Shankara, bless me so that She and I will meet again, and soon!'

****

Kamalaa could not forget those delightful dark brown eyes, like the soil of the rich earth, that had read her Soul that day. She even remembered those beautiful molten gold specks that danced all over His eyes, even from the distance, amidst heavy rain. The cold She had gotten due to dancing in the rain did not bother Her, but not knowing the identity of the man with the captivating eyes bothered Her.

She wanted to meet Him, get to know Him. Something about Him- it told Her clearly that He was the One.

The One She had always dreamt of.

Somehow, She just knew.

Even She could not explain how it was so, but She was more than sure that He was the One for Her. He was Her beloved Krishna.

"Purushottama," She prayed. "Come for me and to me very soon."

She felt a cool breeze touch Her, the blessing of Her Lord,as if to indicate that all will be well.

"May I ever be yours," She prayed once more, when the light sounds of Her mother's aarati reached Her ears, the ringing sounds of the archanai bell like the melody of Krishna's flute, an answer in reassurance.

"I knew you will always be there for me, Mannavane."

With those words, She slipped out of Her room, not noticing the mild fluttering of the peacock feather on Her desk even in the absence of air, a further sign from Murari, the enlivener of hearts.

A day later...

The house was decorated like a new bride, festoons and flowers hung everywhere. It had ben decorated for the welcoming of the hopeful groom of Kamalaa's elder cousin sister Revathi, the latter a karate instructor and architect, managing both professions with aplomb. Kamalaa Herself had been busy with adorning Her sister with jewels required for the occasion, without taking away Revathi's individuality.

Kamalaa's hobby was aesthetic, elegant dressing, while professionally, she was a child psychiatrist, and had seen a lot of unexpected cases.

"Kamalaa," Revathi said. "Do you think this will work out?"

"I feel it will. I have a good feeling about this match, in a way I did not about the previous ones," said Kamalaa softly. "That explains the dressing up too, I guess."

"You always dress me up beautifully, but since you met that mystery man, I feel like you allowed your romantic side to come out in full force, and that is showing in how you are dressing me up."

"Is it?" Kamalaa felt the jhumkas on Her ears hit Her skin lightly, creating a pleasant sensation rather than pain, as She entwined Revathi's long braid with a fusion of malli and kanakambaram.

"It is, and I am loving this," said Revathi. "You have made me some celestial apsara?"

Revathi was clearly joking, but Kamalaa looked at Her sister, and said, "You do not know how beautiful you truly are. Hopefully, my Athimber can and will show you."

"Girls, they are near. Kamalaa, check to make sure all the food is ready, and keep Revathi's vadai-sambar in the front," called out Prerna, Kamalaa's mother, who had taken the position of Revathi's after the latter lost hers.

Kamalaa looked at Revathi and kissed Her forehead gently.

"Get ready Akka, the time has come."

With that, Kamalaa left the room, heading to join the welcoming committee, just as the golden brown eyes her heart had been captivated by fell on Her.

Kamalaa stilled and met His eyes, as He too paused, taken in by Her, the whole world falling away, only each other in the vicinity of the intense gaze of love that radiated from them.

"Purushottama," She whispered, low enough that none but She could hear Herself.

"Neela," He whispered, as if having heard Her, His eyes boring into Hers, as everyone around Them greeted each other, the heady love in the air enhanced within Them, as both walked inside, now side by side, as if unable to even part.

'Krishna, you came, as you promised,' Kamalaa prayed, as everyone got seated, and the introductions started, Kamalaa still glancing at the man intermittently, Her veins thrumming with reassurance and hope.

******

@vibishalakshman @thelekhikawrites @celestesinsight @krishna-sahacharini @kaal-naagin @krishnapriyakiduniya @nirmohi-premika @chemicalmindedlotus @whippersnappersbookworm @sakhiiii @ambidextrousarcher @willkatfanfromasia @nspwriteups @dr-scribbler @rupkatha-banerjee @theramblergirl @hinsaa-paramo-dharma @moon-880 @thegleamingmoon @thereader-radhika @balladedutempsjadis @dr-scribbler Please let me know you thoughts, and do let me know if the rest of you want to be added to the list. 

[pradip-madgaonkar]

Revathi Birthday: Wishes from Pradip Madgaonkar

तलाक के बाद मां बनी थी ये साउथ एक्ट्रेस, सलमान खान की हीरोइन बनने के लिए छुपाई थी एक बड़ी बात!