Kerala trans couple conducts naming ceremony of baby on International Women's Day

The couple had hit headlines by approaching the hospital authorities demanding to register their new gender identity in the birth certificate and other documents of the newborn

                                   Ziya Paval and Zahhad.: Instagram/ Ziya Paval

PTI   |   Kozhikode   |    09.03.23  : The Kerala transgender couple, which was blessed with a baby recently, has conducted the naming ceremony of their newborn on International Women's Day.

The child was named Zabiya Zahhad in a glittering ceremony, held at an open venue in this district on Wednesday evening, which was attended by several persons from the transgender community and well-wishers from various walks of life.

The visibly excited Ziya Paval and Zahhad, said they wished that their baby would spread light in the society.

Asked about their earlier announcement that they did not want to disclose the gender of the child, Paval said they were waiting for the occasion to reveal it to the world.

Pointing to the female name given to the baby, the transwoman also said, "now it is clear to everyone".

"We really wanted our baby's birth to be known to all. I am so happy that my wish has been fulfilled. This function was my dream," she said.

Her partner, Zahhad, who had delivered the child at the Government Medical College Hospital here last month, said they are planning to travel with the baby after six months.

"For the next six months, it's completely rest for us," the transman added.

The trans couple was blessed with the baby through a Caesarean section, on February 8, considered to be the first such case in the country.

The couple had hit headlines by approaching the hospital authorities demanding to register their new gender identity in the birth certificate and other documents of the newborn.

Though Zahhad had delivered the child, the trans-man wanted his name to be registered as the father of the baby and Ziya Paval, his trans-woman partner as its mother.

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Agencies:

Ziya Paval, 21, and her partner Zahad, 23, who live in the southern state of Kerala, were in the process of gender transition when they decided to have a baby.

Ms Paval, who says she always wanted to be a parent, was recorded male at birth and now identifies as female.

Mr Zahad, who uses only one name, was observed as female at birth and now identifies as male. When Ms Paval and Mr Zahad met three years ago, they were both estranged from their families.

"I am from a conservative Muslim family which never allowed me to learn classical dance," Ms Paval says. "[My parents] were orthodox to the point that they used to cut my hair so that I did not dance."

Ms Paval says she left home to participate in a youth festival and never went back.

She learnt dance at a transgender community centre. She now teaches it to students in Kozhikode district.

Mr Zahad, who is trained as an accountant, is from a Christian family from the fishing community in Thiruvananthapuram city. He currently works at a supermarket.

He had left his family after coming out as transgender to them. But after he became pregnant, his family have accepted the couple and been supportive.

It was Mr Zahad's mother who initially asked the couple not to make the pregnancy public. They announced it on their Instagram page last week after she gave permission.

Ms Paval says her family has still not come around.

The couple decided to have a baby one-and-a-half years ago, when they were both at different stages of their gender transition, Ms Paval told the BBC.

Mr Zahad's ovaries and uterus had not been removed yet, so the couple stopped the hormone therapy on their doctors' advice.

"It is very difficult to survive," Ms Paval says, adding that she will have to take on more dance students.

The couple says that the transgender community has been "very welcoming" of their pregnancy.