A transgender couple, who hail from India’s southern state of Kerala, with “tears of joy” welcomed their baby on Wednesday, days after the pregnancy photos went viral
Taking to social media, Ziya Paval shared the good news that her partner Zahad gave birth to a baby on Wednesday morning.
Announcing the delivery, Paval uploaded a photo of the baby who was born almost a month before the due date.
Paval said that both Zahad and the baby are healthy and doing fine. Paval and Zahad, have stated that becoming parents was their dream.
Their pregnancy has been called a rarity in India because “no one else has called themselves a biological parent in the transgender community as far as we know”, the couple had said while speaking to the BBC earlier this week.
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When the couple decided to have a baby, one-and-a-half years ago, the two were at different stages of their respective gender transition processes. As per the doctor’s advice, they had paused their hormone therapy.
Sharing the photo of the baby on Wednesday, the couple expressed their gratitude for the support and prayers sent by their well-wishers.
After the birth of the baby was announced, the couple’s social media pages have been flooded with congratulatory messages.
The couple had earlier stated that after the baby is born, they will have to find more jobs to make ends meet.
“It is very difficult to survive,” Paval said, further adding that she will add more dance students to her class.
“Zahad will go back to work about two months after the baby is born. Then I will take care of the baby,” Paval added.
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The couple stated that their pregnancy was welcomed very warmly by the transgender community.
“Of course, there are people both within the transgender community as well as outside who believe in stereotypes. They think a trans man cannot be carrying a baby. [But] it doesn’t matter,” Paval stated.
Three years ago, Zahad and Paval had met, at a time when both of them had estranged relations with their families.
“I am from a conservative Muslim family which never allowed me to learn classical dance. (My parents) were orthodox to the point that they used to cut my hair so that I did not dance,” Paval narrated
She said that she had left her home to take part in a youth festival and after that, she never returned. She received training in dance at a transgender community centre and now she teaches the art to students in Kozhikode.
Zahad is an accountant and belongs to a Christian family from Thiruvananthapuram’s fishing community. Currently, he is employed at a supermarket.
After coming out as a transgender, he left his family. However, after pregnancy, the couple was accepted by his family. “They are helping Zahad during the pregnancy,” Paval said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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