How Does Being Transgender Affects One’s Identity and the Society They Live?
What makes him “Funny” among the others?
An interesting novel by Shyam Selvadurai
“Funny Boy” is a gay young adult novel by Shyam Selvadurai that charts a boy’s loss of innocence as he wrestles with family conflict and political realities and his transgender. It can be introduced as a coming — of age novel that set in Sri Lanka and it belongs to the genre of historical fiction. When the novel begins, the protagonist, Arjun Chelvarathnam, the second son of wealthy Tamil family who is seven years old is being introduced. He hates sports and enjoys wearing sarees and jewellery. Arjie is fond of playing with the female cousins and playing the role of ‘bride’ in the game ‘Bride- Bride’. This embarrasses his parents and his father sends him to a strict private academy, wishing it may force Arjie ‘to become a man’. Arjie made a close relationship with a boy named Shehan Soyza, who is rumored to be gay, and he accepts his sexuality, his love for Shehan after their first sexual encounter.
This particular novel is shot through the violence between Sri Lankan Sinhalese majority and Hindu Tamil minority. It can be presented that, Arjie breaks down those taboos through loving Shehan. Arjie and his family left the country and…
