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VAIBHAV SARIA, Hijras, Lovers, Brothers: Surviving Sex and Poverty in Rural India, Fordham 

University Press, 2021, 249pp., ISBN 9780192873767 

 

Keywords: Queer Ethnography, Sexuality and Desire, Asceticism and Eroticism, Temporalities of 

Desire, Hijra Identity 

 

"Why do men have sex with men?" …….The answers further link the anxieties of pleasure 

with the substratum economy of semen as it is inherited and understood through the 

Hindu-Muslim cosmogony, offering reasons such as "anus is tighter than vagina and gives 

more pleasure" "protecting a girl's virginity, maintaining chastity" and "no commitment 

to marriage." Other reasons given are "play" and "curiosity." (pg. 10) 

The book Hijras, Lovers, Brothers: Surviving Sex and Poverty in Rural India by Vaibhav Saria 

presents a profound ethnographic exploration of the lived realities of hijras. It delves into the 

nuanced connotations of the term hijra, often associated with transgender identities, and examines 

their complex social and cultural existence in India. Drawing on twenty-four months of 

ethnographic research conducted between 2008 and 2019—including sixteen uninterrupted months 

of cohabitation with a hijra community—the study focuses on two of India’s most economically 

disadvantaged regions, Bhadrak and Kalahandi, in the eastern state of Odisha. 

Bhadrak, the primary field site, provided a rich setting for understanding the economic strategies 

hijras employ for survival. They sustained themselves through various means, including selling 

goods near the shrine of a revered Muslim saint (mazar), soliciting alms aboard trains, participating 

in customary rituals related to childbirth and marriage, performing at religious festivities, and 

engaging in sex work. 

Saria’s investigation was driven by three primary objectives: to analyze the complex dynamics 

between hijras and their biological families, to examine how rural settings increasingly provided 

more sustainable opportunities for hijras compared to urban environments, and to explore the nature 

of sexual interactions and intimate relationships within rural communities, where limited anonymity 

shaped social and personal dynamics. 

Conceptually, Saria frames hijra identity as a form of political theology that both exists within and 

transcends the liberal political framework. The ethnographic immersion becomes palpable from 



 

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page six, where the section Desiring Men vividly portrays the affirmation of sexuality. The text 

introduces specific linguistic expressions used within hijra communities, such as batli to denote the 

rectum, offering deeper insight into their lived realities. Expanding on these themes, the study 

further examines the politics of penetration in hijra relationships, emphasizing how semen is 

symbolically invoked as never being wasted. Saria weaves personal experiences into the narrative, 

detailing both moments of engagement and obstacles encountered in the field: 

“It was not only my sexuality but also my long hair and feminine attire that identified me 

as a hijra, allowing me to remain among them by the highway, where we engaged in long 

conversations during their sex work” (pg. 16). 

The book is structured into five chapters, beginning with an introduction that situates hijra sexuality 

within the framework of global public health and HIV prevention. The concluding chapter revisits 

this issue from the perspective of hijras themselves, while the intervening chapters provide an in-

depth exploration of their daily lives, challenges, and moments of joy. The first chapter, A 

Prodigious Birth of Love, explores how hijras employ laughter, flirtation, and seduction (pg. 26) to 

validate their romantic inclinations toward men. Laughter, presented as an invitation, reveals two 

key dynamics: the moral influence of kinship on both social and bodily realms and the interplay of 

liberty and restriction within desires for anal intimacy, challenging kinship norms. The chapter then 

examines flirtation, illustrating it through a poignant episode. A particularly striking passage states: 

“A hijra can never build a home with a man. He needs children, heirs, and society (din-

duniya). With a hijra, he will have neither heirs nor a traditional household. Yet, on rare 

occasions, one in a million forsakes these conventions and marries a maichiya.” (pg. 30) 

A conversational exchange follows (pg. 47), positioning hijra experiences within broader ethical 

frameworks of endurance and preservation. Saria identifies four key perspectives: first, ironic 

speech cultivates sringara (romantic love) through laughter while interwoven with melancholia, 

hope, sorrow, and elation. Second, recurring discussions of “babies” allow the articulation of an 

otherwise unattainable longing, even in the face of mortality. Third, sexual relationships disrupt yet 

ultimately reinforce male domestic obligations. Lastly, hijras embody a distinct form of caregiving, 

acknowledged individually and collectively, particularly through blessings believed to facilitate 

sexual and reproductive aspirations within societal structures. 

 

Chapter 2, In False Brothers, Evil Awakens, examines hijras' fraternal ties, positioning them as 

pivotal in renegotiating kinship, given their transition from male identities. Saria contends that their 

presence within families, particularly regarding inheritance and property rights, necessitates a 

redefinition of kinship, care, and asceticism. While hijras claim ancestral property, their rejection 

of marriage and biological reproduction disrupts traditional lineage structures. However, some do 

marry, maintain wives, and raise children—whether biologically theirs or adopted—blurring the 

boundaries of domestic belonging. Despite societal suspicion, hijras actively engage in household 



 

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transactions, contributing emotional and nonreproductive affective labor that sustains familial and 

social structures. A particularly compelling section, The Mahabharata of this World (pg. 72), 

further explores these complexities. 

 

The interlude (pg. 100) critically examines hijras' placement within the male-female binary, 

challenging conventional classifications such as the third gender or transgender. Saria proposes 

alternative frameworks—asceticism and eroticism—that move beyond gender-based 

contradictions. The discourse revolves around authenticity, where being asli (real) or nakli (false) 

is context-dependent, shaping gender and sexual expression. Additionally, the chapter explores 

hijras’ engagement in sex work, highlighting its intersection with ascetic practices. The fluidity 

between clients, friends, and lovers complicates distinctions, reflecting the economic entanglements 

that define hijras' social world, a theme further explored in the subsequent chapters. 

 

The next chapter examines the financial practices of hijras, challenging conventional moral-

religious exchanges such as daan, dakshina, bhiksha, dalaali, and haq (pg. 109–110). The 

intersection of poverty and sexuality has hindered broader social change, as hijras sustain 

livelihoods through begging and prostitution. Efforts to address these stigmatized roles through 

legal reforms have largely failed in Odisha, as such interventions strip hijras of agency and impose 

a bourgeois ideal rooted in colonial legacies. Additionally, the chapter highlights the overlooked 

presence of hijra politicians, whose participation at local levels contrasts with their exclusion from 

mainstream LGBT advocacy. Saria argues that reducing hijras to mere beggars ignores their 

political agency and calls for a reevaluation of the ethical frameworks surrounding their societal 

role. 

 

Chapter 4 explores the complexities of romantic and sexual relationships between hijras and their 

male partners, illustrating how sexual encounters transcend fixed notions of time, space, and 

experience. Saria argues that intimacy cannot be confined to physical acts alone, which contributes 

to the reluctance to use condoms. Despite efforts to destigmatize HIV, the existential threat it poses 

does not deter the pursuit of love, as relationships in South Asia intertwine physical and spiritual 

dimensions. Love and financial exchange, though seemingly oppositional, serve a shared function 

of valuation (pg. 169). By mapping hijra narratives onto medieval Sufi-Hindavi romances like 

Madhumalati and Mrigyavati, Saria highlights a sacred geometry in love that dissolves rigid 

boundaries of sex, attachment, and temporality. Rejecting identity-based classifications such as 

"high risk" or "MSM," they instead portray hijra intimacy as a profound, life-defining force. 

Drawing from literary criticism, queer theory, and anthropology, Saria demonstrates how sexuality, 

shaped by class disparities, reconfigures poverty’s perceived marginalization through the 

transformative potential of desire. 

 

Chapter 5 concludes the book by revisiting the discourse on HIV through the lens of the preceding 

chapters, examining the inherent risks hijras navigate within their socio-moral landscapes. Saria 



 

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contrasts these lived risks with the risk-averse framework of public health, highlighting the 

dissonance between HIV prevention narratives and the realities of rural Odisha. The chapter 

critiques both public health policies and contemporary queer theory’s emphasis on temporality and 

futurity. By framing love affairs not merely as expressions of queer desire but as temporal 

experiences, Saria argues that sexual encounters function as events rather than discrete acts, 

resisting linear notions of the future. Instead of being confined to an inevitable trajectory of 

marginalization, relationships with hijras reframe time itself—transforming it from an oppressive 

continuum of hardship into a vibrant, immediate present. 

 

This work will undoubtedly be remembered as a landmark in the history of queer ethnographic 

writing. Saria's meticulous documentation offers an immersive journey into the lives of hijras—one 

that moved me deeply. I laughed, I cried, and I felt every moment come alive through their words. 

This ethnography is not only a valuable addition to existing anthropological studies on hijras but 

also bridges critical gaps in the discourse. Through compelling first-hand narratives, seamlessly 

interwoven with theory and rich connections to Indian mythology, Saria crafts a vivid and 

multifaceted portrait of hijras. A truly remarkable and necessary contribution! 

 

Abhijeet Singh Dewari is a young researcher, writer, and anthropologist pursuing postgraduate 

studies at the University of Delhi. He authored a novel at 13, published in 2019, and has contributed 

research to high-impact journals like Ageing Research Reviews. His ethnographic work among the 

Jaad Bhotiyas of Uttarkashi has gained recognition. A Cultural Ambassador for Kumaon and a 

Kathak representative at national and international forums, his research spans kinanthropometry, 

physiological anthropology, dance aesthetics, spirituality, and Himalayan studies. He has been 

affiliated with CARTA, USA, and has published book reviews in esteemed journals, including the 

Anthropology Book Forum of the AAA. His work explores the cognitive benefits of Kathak, 

biocultural aging, and Himalayan ethnography. 

 

 

 

 

 

© 2025 Abhijeet Singh Dewari 

 


