Rose Goes On

Rose Venkatesan, India’s first transgender talk show host, also has many other firsts to her credit.

Rose Venkatesan, India’s first transgender talk show host, also has many other firsts to her credit. She tried without much success to launch a political party, called Sexual Liberation Party, which would focus on transgender issues. She has also recorded a music album called Chocolate Roses but shelved the project after failing to find an audience. Undeterred, she is now planning to direct a feature film called Cricket Scandal. Rose, who’s based in Chennai, says she had wanted to make a movie for a long time. And since she wanted to target a mainstream audience, its plot is based on cricket, sex and betting. The part where the film deals with sex and intrigue is where she would like to bring in the issue of transsexuals. She will also be playing a role in it. Rose says she has found a producer. Let’s hope that her latest venture works out. Despite her celebrity status, Rose has had to deal with financial problems, and does freelance speech and accent training to keep herself going. But she says she won’t give up.