Naaz Joshi
Naaz Joshi (born on December 31st 1984 in New Delhi India[1]) is India's first transgender international beauty queen, a trans rights activist[2] and a motivational speaker.
Naaz Joshi | |
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Born | Aizya Joshi 1984 (age 36–37) |
Modeling information | |
Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) |
Hair color | Brown |
Eye color | Green |
Joshi won Miss World Diversity beauty pageant three times in a row.[3] She is also India's first transgender cover model.[4] She also happens to be world's first Trans Sexual to win international beauty pageant with cisgenderwomen. [5]
Naaz Joshi won the title of Miss Universe Diversity 2020, making her India’s first international trans beauty queen with six international crowns. [6]
Early life
She was born as Aizya Naaz Joshi to a Muslim mother and Hindu Punjabi father.[7] At an early age of 7, her family sent her to a distant relative in Mumbai to avoid taunts from the society for her feminine behavior. She worked at dance bars and restaurants to earn her living. Later, she enrolled National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) and completed her formal studies in fashion design.[8] She later completed her MBA in marketing from the Institute of Management Technology, Ghaziabad.[9]
Personal life
Joshi worked as a sex worker to earn money for her sex reassignment surgery.[10] In 2018, she claimed to be a victim of gender discrimination after having her booking rejected by a hotel in Gurgaon. Although a junior employee of the hotel initially contacted about the matter by the Hindustan Times stated that the booking was cancelled for "gender-based reasons", this was later denied by the general manager who stated the "allegations of discrimination of any kind were false" and that the hotel had not yet confirmed Joshi's booking because it was still waiting for approval from the regional sales office.[11]
The status of India’s transgender population improved when the NALSA was able to get transgender recognized as a third gender by the Supreme Court of India on 14 April 2014.[12] She has also won the Miss Republic International Beauty Ambassador 2017 and Miss United Nations Ambassador pageants. On winning this particular title, she told Indulge Express that winning the crown gives her more power and responsibility towards society, with which she aims to work towards bringing the transgender community into the mainstream.[13]
IIM students interacted with Miss World Diversity 2019 to promote mutual respect and inclusion of the third gender.[14]
During an interview on 72nd independence day celebration of India, she stated that love is not free in the country, she was living in with a boy and her marriage called off because she is a transwoman. Trans women in India are often subjected to hatred and trans phobia.
Pageantry
Joshi first won Miss World Diversity in 2017, and retained her title the following year. She then became the first transgender to win the title for the third consecutive year in 2019. The win also made her the first transgender person in the world to win an international crown against cis-gendered women.[16]
She also won Miss Transqueen India in 2018.[17][18]
Joshi was invited to tedx at GLA university in Mathura on December 8h, to inspire people born with disabilities. The theme of the talk was silent heroes hidden truth.[19]
Naaz Joshi won Miss Universe Diversity 2020, due to pandemic of covid 19, the organisation took it digital this year. There were contestants from thirty countries who were given online tasks. Naaz chose to work on women safety and self defence. [20]
References
- "Naaz Joshi: From being abandoned to winning Miss Universe Diversity; Story of the 1st transgender beauty queen". Pink villa. 2 September 2020. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
- Tandon, Rajguru (10 September 2019). "Naaz Joshi,The Trans- Woman Inspiring Change In The Community". Business World. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- Mathur, Priyanshi (8 August 2019). "making India Proud: Transgender Model Naaz Joshi Wins The Title Of Miss World Diversity 2019". INDIA TIMES. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- Maki (23 October 2017). "Transgender cover girl in India". Transgenderfeed. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- sharma, shweta (17 August 2019). "Not easy to compete with cis women: Naaz Joshi, India's first transgender to win Miss World Diversity title thrice". indian express. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
- poljar, angela (8 August 2020). "INTERVIEW | I'm looking for power to voice my opinions: Miss Universe Diversity Naaz Joshi". new indian express. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
- "3 Time Miss Diversity Aizya Naaz Joshi Wants To Use Her Crown To Work For Her Community". Women's web. 21 August 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- Soni, Preeti (27 August 2018). "Abandoned at 7, raped at 11, India's three-time Miss Diversity, Naaz Joshi, shares the gut wrenching plight of the country's trans community". MSN. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- Monn, Cherrylan (28 August 2018). "Crowning glory". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
- Norboo, Rinchen (27 August 2018). "India's 1st International Transgender Beauty Queen Once Washed Dishes, Survived Sexual Assault". The Better India. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- "Trans woman model alleges gender discrimination by hotel in Civil Lines". Hindustan Times. 28 March 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- Daz, Deepannita (24 February 2019). "Being Aizya Naaz Joshi – From Washing Dishes In A Roadside Dhaba To Winning Miss World Diversity". Beyond the Numbers. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- Shruti (9 October 2019). "Creating History: Transgender Model Naaz Joshi Wins Miss World Diversity For The Third Time!". What's Hot. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
- "IIM students interact with Miss World Diversity 2019 to promote social inclusion". India today. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
- "Independence Day 2020: Is India independent to love?". Midday. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- "Not easy to compete with cis women: Naaz Joshi, India's first transgender to win Miss World Diversity title thrice2018". Indian Express. 17 August 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
- "Naaz Joshi First Indian Transexual to Win Miss World Diversity 2018". APN NEWS. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- Sharma, Shweta (17 August 2019). "Not easy to compete with cis women: Naaz Joshi, India's first transgender to win Miss World Diversity title thrice 2018". New Indian Express. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- "Story of my struggle". tedx YouTube channel. 22 February 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- "INTERVIEW | I'm looking for power to voice my opinions: Miss Universe Diversity Naaz Joshi". New Indian Express. 8 August 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.