In 2015, in a quiet but defining moment, a group of transgender individuals sat together in a bar and confronted a shared reality: they could not occupy public spaces without fear, scrutiny, or exclusion. This realisation became the seed for what would formally begin in January 2016 as the Aravani Art Project, a collective that would go on to challenge not only public perception but also the economic pathways available to transgender communities in India.
Aravani did not position itself as an art collective, because much like the challenges they were trying to address, one of identity, gender, exclusion, the answer had to also hold multiplicity. Aravani thus grew into a space that functions simultaneously as a studio, a training ground, an incubator of opportunities, and a community space, a place where artistic practice intersects with livelihood, identity, and public presence. For the founder, Poornima Sukumar, it’s simple, “It’s all of that.”
Before Aravani: Survival, Rejection, and Small Acts of Expression
For Shanthi, a transgender woman born and raised in Bangalore, the question of belonging was never abstract. It was immediate and deeply personal. When she came out to her family, she was met with rejection and forced to leave home, which led to her moving into the local transgender community, where survival often meant engaging in begging or sex work.
“This was the only survival thing that I had to do,” she shares.
Yet, even within these constraints, there were traces of something quieter but persistent. As a child, Shanthi had been drawn to art. She remembers watching her mother drawing rangoli outside their home, being captivated by the symmetry and colour. One day, she tried to recreate it herself, only to be told, “This is something a girl would do, not a boy.”
The message was clear: not only was her identity being policed, but even her creative instincts were being restricted. Still, she continued to draw, in school notebooks, in geometry diagrams, in science projects, finding small, private ways to hold onto that interest. Years later, in 2013–2014, she found herself stepping into another unexpected role, that of a radio jockey. Invited to host shows on a community radio platform, she began speaking about the lives of sex workers, drawing on her own experiences.
Finding Aravani: A Message, A Chance, A Risk
It was during one such moment, scrolling through social media, that Shanthi first came across Aravani. The idea that a collective of transgender artists was creating murals in public spaces felt almost improbable. “I felt, wow, this is happening in India. Let me try my luck,” she says.
Her first project was a mural in a school library on the outskirts of Bangalore. On the way to the site, she almost turned back. “I was really scared of children… If one child comes to know that I was trans, the whole school will look at me in a very awkward way,” she recalls.
Thankfully, she didn’t give into that fear, and that experience was definitely not what she expected. As the artists began painting, children gathered around, curious. Some joined in and one even approached her asking, “Ma’am, can you tell me how to draw this?” “That will be my happiest and unforgettable moment,” she says. “They didn’t recognise the gender… the children are very innocent.”
In some ways, that was a turning point. In that moment, something shifted. The fear of being seen was replaced, however briefly, by the experience of being accepted.
The Work Itself: Art as Process, Presence, and Movement
Since 2016, Aravani has completed over 500 murals across more than 35 locations in India, expanding its presence across cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai, and Delhi. Each project follows a collaborative process where the trans artists at the Aravani Team conceptualise, sketch, and create together. Now the transwomen artists have a chance to reclaim public spaces beyond the label of hijra or kinnar, but rather as people, as artists.
“Mostly people think, why are these people here?” Shanthi explains. But as the mural takes shape, something changes. The same people who were uncertain begin to engage, taking photographs, asking questions, and celebrating the finished work. “Once the wall is finished, they want to take a selfie with us… Such changes happen through the mural initiative,” she says.
Aravani’s work extends beyond painting. Through grants and collaborations, artists have explored photography, theatre, textiles, and performance. Shanthi herself discovered an interest in photography, experiencing, for the first time, what it meant to be behind the camera rather than in front of it.
“I felt the power of the camera when I had it in my hand,” she says. She also participated in a theatre production titled Nava, which explored the lives of urban transgender women. These opportunities reflect Aravani’s broader role, not just as a platform for art, but as a space where artists can experiment, learn, and redefine their own identities.
Structure, Livelihood, and the Question of Sustainability
Aravani operates through a lean and flexible structure. With only a small number of full-time staff and a network of artists and consultants working across regions, the organisation functions through project-based collaborations.
Artists are typically paid per project, with earnings varying based on scale and location, ranging approximately between ₹90,000 and ₹1,20,000 annually for certain projects. However, this income is not yet consistently stable enough to serve as a primary livelihood for all artists. The organisation relies largely on commissions and grants, with CSR funding still in development. During periods without projects, emergency funds are used to sustain operations.
This creates a dual reality: Aravani opens up economic possibilities, but also operates within the constraints of a project-driven model.
Looking Ahead: Between Dream and Possibility
Over time, there has been a gradual shift in how transgender individuals are perceived in public spaces. Legal changes after 2012, combined with increased visibility through initiatives like Aravani, have contributed to this shift. “Slowly people are thinking… they are not only sex workers or beggars, but they can do other jobs also,” Shanthi notes. Yet, the change is uneven and incomplete.
For Shanthi, the journey with Aravani has opened doors that once felt unimaginable. From painting murals across India to travelling internationally and participating in the Venice Biennale, her experiences have redefined what she believed was possible. Looking ahead, she envisions creating a series of artworks that reflect her own life journey, exhibiting in galleries and residencies, and continuing to explore art beyond the collective. When asked to describe her journey, Shanthi pauses and then says: “It is a roller coaster ride.”
Aravani, in many ways, mirrors this journey.
A wall becomes more than a surface.
An artist becomes more than a label.
And a space that once excluded begins, slowly, to open.