ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author explores the cultural politics of the formation of the Kinnar Akhada through which new idioms of hijra personhood oriented towards a largely upper-caste, middle-class publics are being crafted within the emerging political context of rising Hindu nationalism. To do so, this work draws on hijra representations through which transgender activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi crafts her politics of trans-visibility to engage with the politics of mainstreaming hijras.
