Trans healthcare is treated like an optional extra. But it is life-saving.

In this episode, we speak with Kahless Jaden Hameed, a trans writer and activist based in Colombo, about what it means to navigate healthcare systems that choose not to see trans and disabled people as fully human.

From being denied hormones, to being misgendered and dismissed, to walking city after city just to find essential medication, this is not an accident. It is systemic. It is violence.

You can check out the podcast transcript ⁠here⁠.

Follow Atypical Dikkatein on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠social media⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Say hi⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to me, your host Soumya.

Graphic by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Harshvardhan Bhaskar⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Khushi (Kay) Solanki⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Transcript by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Khushi (Kay) Solanki⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Sound editing and production by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pranjal Pathak

Abortion isn’t going anywhere.

In Episode 6 of Atypical Dikkatein Season 2, we speak with Vinitha, a Bahujan queer feminist researcher, about why abortion rights must be seen as central to bodily autonomy and reproductive justice.

From the gaps in India’s SRHR movement to the rise of anti-choice narratives, this episode unpacks how abortion continues to be stigmatized, even within feminist spaces, and why stronger, intersectional movements are urgently needed.

You can check out the podcast transcript here.

Some Data Points and Helpful Links:

1. A Foundation for Reproductive Health Services study found 32% of respondents were unaware of abortion as a legal right, and that 95.5% of Indian women were uninformed of the existence of the MTP (Amendment) Act, 2021.

2. According to the Rural Health Statistics (2019-20), released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in May 2021, there was a shortfall of almost 70% for obstetricians and gynaecologists, which severely limits women’s access to safe abortion services

3. 2 million adolescents lack access to contemporary abortion services, 78% abortions performed for adolescents were unsafe, 190,000 adolescents don’t receive post-abortion care.

4. Every day, at least 8 women in the country die as a result of unsafe abortion-related causes, making it the third leading cause of maternal death (https://www.guttmacher.org/report/abortion-unintended-pregnancy-six-states-india)

5. Population, Eugenics and Reproductive Rights: Legalising Abortion in India (by Mytheli Sreenivas): https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00856401.2024.2412468

Follow Atypical Dikkatein on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠social media⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Say hi⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to me, your host Soumya.

Graphic by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Harshvardhan Bhaskar⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Khushi (Kay) Solanki⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Transcript by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Khushi (Kay) Solanki⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Sound editing and production by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pranjal Pathak

Content Warning: Mention of abuse and harassment.

We’re taught to fear our bodies, never to understand them.

In Episode 5 of Atypical Dikkatein Season 2, Jannatul Ferdous, burn survivor, feminist, and disability rights advocate, reflects on how conversations around sexual and reproductive health are shrouded in shame, silence, and misinformation.

Puberty, pregnancy, hormones, nutrition, these are not just biological facts, they’re deeply social experiences. But when the only focus is on morality, our health, dignity, and choices get lost.

You can check out the podcast transcript here.

Some Helpful Links

1. Building a New Support Ecosystem for Women Burn Survivors of Domestic Violence - https://www.pcvconline.org/images/BEYOND-BURNS-RESEARCH-REPORT.pdf
2. Acid Violence in South Asia: A Structural Analysis toward Transformative Justice - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2455632717708717
3. Justice a Distant Dream for Acid Attack Survivors in South Asia - https://thediplomat.com/2023/12/justice-a-distant-dream-for-acid-attack-survivors-in-south-asia/

Follow Atypical Dikkatein on ⁠⁠⁠⁠social media⁠⁠⁠⁠.

⁠⁠⁠⁠Say hi⁠⁠⁠⁠ to me, your host Soumya.

Graphic by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Harshvardhan Bhaskar⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠Khushi (Kay) Solanki⁠⁠⁠⁠

Transcript by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Khushi (Kay) Solanki⁠⁠⁠⁠

Sound editing and production by: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Pranjal Pathak