At 26, Nitasha Biswas has made history. In a one-of-a-kind beauty pageant, Nitasha went on to become India’s first Miss Trans Queen, and it has changed her life. After completing her management studies, Nitasha, a former student of St. Xaviers College, Kolkata, moved to Delhi to study fashion and modeling. She took part in the event after seeing a post on social media.
Elaborating on the pageant, she says, “It was an experience of a lifetime. I got to meet a lot of people from different regions sharing the same passion. We worked hard for about seven months to perfect our ramp walk, posture, diet management, etc,” and adds, “I will never forget the crowning moment. I went blank for a few seconds with the heaviness of the crown on my head. All the struggle that I went through flashed in front of my eyes.”
Nitasha’s journey has been a long one. “I knew about my sexuality from a young age. But, as I came from a strict family background I couldn’t open up as early as I would have wanted to. Years later, I finally opened up to my brother. He thought it was just a phase. But soon, both my father and he realised that I was serious and my need for a transition was real. From then on, I had their support. They were always there in each of my phases of transition,” she says.
For Nitasha, it took around six years to come to terms with her new body. “Even though the medical transition takes about three years, the entire journey, including counselling, takes about six years. But it was all worth it. I knew that the transition would take time, so I completed my studies before jumping into it,” she says.
Nitasha’s next call of duty is Thailand where she will be representing India in the Miss Trans Queen International. Talking about her future plans, she elaborates, “I had worked as a stylist for Bengali movies and was interested in modeling. Now that I have won the coveted crown, I will continue my work in the field of modeling and eventually venture into Bollywood as well. Winning the crown got me to realise that this is not just a beauty pageant; I have become the torchbearer of my community.”
