Meet Ghazal Dhaliwal, the transwoman writer of 'Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga'

Sonam Kapoor, Anil Kapoor starrer 'Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To Aisa Laga' has been a historic film for several reasons. The film not only pairs Sonam Kapoor and her father Anil Kapoor on screen for the first time, but is also perhaps the first commercial film in Bollywood that has an LGBTQ love story at its core. The film also has a transwoman as its writer.

Ghazal Dhaliwal, a transwoman writer has been writing dialogues and screenplay for Hindi films for some time now. She has worked on films like 'Lipstick Under My Burkha', 'Qarib Qarib Singlle' and 'Wazir' before. But with 'Ek Ladki Ko Dekha To Aisa Laga' she makes her transition as the story writer of the film.

Born as Gunraj, a boy, Ghazal had Gender Dysphoria - where a person does not associate with the biological gender he or she is born with.
Back in 2014, on an episode of Alternative Sexualities on Aamir Khan's show 'Satyamev Jayate', Ghazal had recalled how she was always felt like a woman but trapped in a man's body. "I was born in the wrong body. I was born in the body of a man but I never felt like a man. I liked playing with girls, I liked wearing my mother's clothes, playing with her dupattas... when I was 5 years old, I realized that I liked feminine things. My aunt saw me once playing with my mother's clothes, and she slapped me. That was the first time I realized that how society views me, and how I view myself is different," recalled Ghazal.

Ghazal's initial years as Gunraj was a struggle. "For the longest time I could not tell people how I felt... because my behaviour was a little feminine, I was teased a lot in school. And I kept trying to hide my identity. For every day, every minute, ever second, I felt trapped... as if I was in jail."
She first spoke to her father about her identity at the age of 14 and while they were p[atient, they were unable to understand what she meant.

At 16 she fled from home and boarded a train to Delhi but got scared mid-way and called her parents back home. As her father came to take her back home, she admitted that it was not a phase for her. Her parents came around and have supported her ever since.

It was in 2007 that she underwent a Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS) - a decision which was in fact prompted by her parents."After the surgery, I was not excited, but at peace. Because finally, my soul was at peace with my body."

Her love for movies made her shift to Mumbai in 2005 after working in Infosys for two years. While she studied engineering, she always had aspirations to become a writer in Bollywood. With a degree in filmmaking from St. Xavier's, she has in the past assisted filmmaker Govind Nihalani.

Ghazal has been an active voice for the LGBTQ community and has used public platforms to share her story and inspire others.

She has also made a short film called 'A Monsoon Date' that stars Konkona Sen Sharma in the lead and was screened at MAMI last year. Ghazal says she drew a lot from her personal life experiences while writing for 'Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga'.

Directed by Shelly Chopra Dhar, 'Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga' also stars Rajkummar Rao and Juhi Chawla. It is set to release on 1st February.