Kami Sid is the first Pakistani trans person to rise to prominence as a fashion model. Sid is also an actor and LGBTQ rights activist. [1] Sid also became a controversial figure after accusations of rape and sexual assault against her. [2]
Sid was born to a middle-class family in Karachi comprising seven siblings. Sid's father died during her adolescence and she was raised by a supportive mother. She has a bachelor's degree in Business Studies. She tried to go to the UK for higher studies, but was unable to get a visa. Among the trans communities in Pakistan, Sid belongs to the Khawaja Sira community. [3]
In 2012, Sid travelled to Thailand for their first photoshoot. The exposure as Pakistan's first trans model brought about a lot of backlash. [3]
In November 2016, Sid did a photoshoot as a form of protest against the atrocities committed against transgender people in Pakistan. [4] On the Pakistani Independence Day of 2017, Sid posed on a rooftop in Karachi while holding up the Pakistani flag. She has given a lecture on transphobia and misogyny in the Karachi Literature Festival in London. Sid is a board member of this non-profit organisation called 'Street to School', which teaches sex-ed and cultural diversity to schoolchildren. She is the program coordinator of the Aks International Minorities Festival in Copenhagen, Denmark. [5]
In 2017, Sid made her acting debut in the short film "Rani" as a transgender toy seller who makes her living selling the items on the streets of Karachi. Produced by GrayScale and Rizvilia Productions, the film is directed by Hammad Rizvi. [6] Of Sid's performance in the film, the Daily Pakistan said that Sid "is a force of nature in it". [7] She was also cast in a play titled 'Dil e Nadan', a play based on a trans person and their relationship with society. [8]
Kami Sid was also accused of rape and sexual assault after which Aurat March organizers removed her from serving as a part of their organizing team in 2018. [9] [10] Though Kami rejects the allegations but Aurat March organizers issued a statement that Sid intimidated them. [11] Kami Sid's participation in the PR campaign Change The Clap has also been critiqued for appeasing neoliberal forces and ignoring local practices of the Khawaja Sira community. [12] [13]