Actor Muneeb Butt had announced on social media two days ago that he would be playing the first ever transgender Assistant Commissioner in an ARY television serial. Butt had written in the post that this was a role that would break stereotypes in our society.

However, transgender activists were furious about this casting choice and responded by pointing out that the role would have been more empowering had a transgender person been cast.

Transgender activists on Twitter shared that there were many trans people who were unemployed and who deserved good, authentic representation on public platforms, hence it was unnecessary to hire a man to play this role.

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Another trans user called this decision ‘dangerous’ because the entertainment will keep on capitalising on transgender issues, rather than employ members of the trans community and bring them to the table.

So hopefully, our industry should be mindful about writing stories about minorities and be sure to invite members of said community while giving them the chance to tell these stories themselves without speaking over them. One of the foremost essential demands made by the transgender community is to be granted equal opportunity and rights as anyone else in Pakistan, and we can assure that by allowing them to tell their own stories without censoring them.