Apsara Reddy (born Ajay Reddy) is an Indian trans woman politician and journalist.[1] She was earlier inducted as National Spokesperson of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam by Former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa in 2016.[2][3] On 8 January 2018, Reddy became the first transgender person to hold office in the Congress She returned to the AIADMK and campaigned as its star campaigner in the 2021 State elections.[4]
Apsara Reddy | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | Madras |
| Political party | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (from April 2020) |
| Other political affiliations | Indian National Congress (September 2018 to April 2020) |
| Occupation | Senior Journalist/Politician/Social Activist |
| Official Spokesperson (National TV), AIADMK
(Current) National General Secretary of All India Mahila Congress (2018-2020) | |
Early life and education
editReddy has a BA degree in Journalism from Monash University and an MA in Broadcasting with a special focus on Developmental Economics from the City University in London. She was the Overseas Students Service's President at Monash University.[5]
Career
editReddy has worked with the BBC World Service, The Hindu,[3] Commonwealth Secretariat in London,[6] New Indian Express and Deccan Chronicle. She has written columns on topics including consumerism, politics, celebrity lifestyles and education. She has interviewed Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Ex PM Australia John Howard, F1 racer Michael Schumacher, AR Rahman, and Hollywood star Nicolas Cage. She has also covered the tsunami from Sri Lanka, India and Indonesia.[7]
She has also worked at the Indian Consulate in Melbourne as a media adviser to the Consulate General, Dr. T.J. Rao.[8]
Reddy also worked briefly with UNICEF to launch a health campaign across Tamil Nadu.[citation needed]
Starting in 2013, she hosted a Tamil show Natpudan Apsara which aired on Thanthi TV.
She has also spoken at various high-profile platforms including the European Parliament Session in Madrid, The World Pride Summit, UNICEF and top institutions like Goldman Sachs, NASSCOM INDIA and even at Princeton University.
Politics
editIn May 2016, she joined the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam(AIADMK).[9] Previously, she had joined Bharatiya Janata Party in February 2016.[10][11][12] In January 2019, she was appointed national general secretary of All India Mahila Congress by Rahul Gandhi, making her the first transgender person to be appointed as a general secretary of any political party in India.[13] In November 2020, she rejoined AIADMK ahead of the upcoming Tamil Nadu assembly election.[14][15]
References
edit- ^ ""எனக்கு நானே ஒரு கிஃப்ட்!" - அப்சரா ரெட்டி | அப்சரா ரெட்டி". www.vikatan.com/ (in Tamil). 11 July 2013. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
- ^ "After Khushbu Sundar, Apsara Reddy deserts Congress, to rejoin AIADMK". 20 November 2020.
- ^ a b "Apsara Reddy on how supportive the city has been to her". The Hindu. 8 August 2024. Archived from the original on 7 August 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
- ^ "Apsara Reddy, Congress Party's First Transgender Office-Bearer, On Life, Love And Politics". HuffPost. 5 February 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- ^ "Meet Apsara Reddy, Congress's first transgender women's wing general secretary". Qrius. 10 January 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
- ^ "Apsara Reddy Becomes First Transgender Office-bearer In Congress's History". FIFTY SHADES OF GAY. 9 January 2019. Archived from the original on 25 May 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
- ^ "Congress appoints transgender activist Apsara Reddy as general secretary of its women wing". NewsX. 8 January 2019. Archived from the original on 25 May 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
- ^ Kundu, Sreemoyee Piu (3 April 2016). "How society made Apsara regret wanting to be transgender". dailyO. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
- ^ "Chennai 360 – Chennaionline". chennaionline.com.
- ^ "From lotus to two leaves in a jiffy". The Hindu. 11 May 2016 – via www.thehindu.com.
- ^ Meet Apsara Reddy, latest sensational Politician from BJP
- ^ Vasudevan, Shilpa (2 April 2016). "Third gender pitches for lead role in politics". The Times of India.
- ^ "Congress appoints Apsara Reddy as the first transgender National General Secretary of AIMC". Newsd www.newsd.in. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
- ^ "After Khushbu Sundar, Apsara Reddy deserts Congress, to rejoin AIADMK". New Indian Express. 20 November 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
- ^ "Apsara Reddy rejoins AIADMK". The Hindu. 21 November 2020. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 21 November 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2024.