Rehana Fathima is a Kerela-based activist, who came into limelight after the Sabarimala temple row. He is known to break the stereotypes and traditions of the society for which he is involved in controversies now and then.
Wiki/Biography
Rehana Fathima was born on Friday, 30 May 1986 (age 37 years; in 2023) in Ernakulam, Kerela. Her full name is Rehana Fathima Pyarijaan Sulaiman, and her zodiac sign is Gemini. Her other name is Surya Gayatri. He completed his schooling in 2001 from Government Higher Secondary School, Ernakulam. After that, he obtained his B.Com & MCA degrees from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and worked in BSNL as a Telecom Technician. In addition, she has acted in the movie ‘Eka’ and has also been modeling for several years. Fathima is a prominent social activist in Kerela, known for breaking social barriers and raising her voice for equality and freedom.
Physical appearance
Height (approx): 5′ 7″
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Black
Family & Religion
Fathima was born into an orthodox Muslim family, however, she became disillusioned with religion following her father’s death.
Parents & Siblings
His father, Pyarijaan Sulaiman died when he was in grade 12.
Relationships & Children
Fathima had a live-in relationship with Manoj Sreedharan, a film producer and social activist.
Rehana with her partner Manoj outside their residence
Old photo of Fathima with Manoj Sreedharan captured in 2009
The couple together have two children.
Picture of Rehana and Manoj with their children
Activism & Controversy
The description in his Facebook biography says, ‘Break the Rules.’ Therefore, his activities to break the glass ceiling always made him live and die in controversy.
- In March 2014, he participated in the Kiss of love agitation against the Kerela government’s moral policing. He, along with life partner, Manoj Sreedharan is at the forefront of the Kiss of Love campaign against moral policing. Manoj shared a video clip of the kiss on his Facebook account.
my love kiss from whatsapp with Rehana Fathima
Posted by Manoj K Sreedhar on this day on November 16, 2014
- Since his childhood, he has challenged the dogmatic rituals and principles of different religions. In 2016, she was among the first women to participate in ‘Ayyanthol Puli Kali,’ a traditional male festival Onam tiger dance performed by male groups.
- In March 2018, she joined the ‘Bare the Chest’ campaign by sharing a picture holding a watermelon on her breast to protest the derogatory remarks made by a professor in Kozhikode who reportedly linked women’s breasts to slices of watermelon.
- In 2017, she acted in the Malayalam film ‘Eka,’ an art piece focusing on intersexuality. Reportedly, Eka is based on a true incident and is the first Indian film to come out and show atrocities against transgenders, transsexuals, LGBT and all gender minorities. However, the film was banned in India.
- In September 2018, the Supreme Court of India delivered its verdict in the Ayyappa Temple entry at Sabarimala, which allowed women of all ages to enter the holy shrine. In the past, entry to the temple was restricted to women of menstruating age. Hence, this decision led to massive protests in Kerela. Known for breaking the prevailing glass ceiling in the society, Rehana Fathima along with a Hyderabad journalist, Kavitha Jakkal marched towards the Sabarimala Temple under tight police protection. However, attempts to enter the temple were unsuccessful by a group of protesters and Hindus, who blocked their entry just 500 meters from the temple. He had to face some serious backlash as an attempt to enter the temple resulted in outrage and his house being vandalized by a group of agitated protesters.
Rehana and reporter Kavitha Jakkal walked out of the Sabarimala temple
- In November 2018, he was suspended by BSNL and was arrested by the police for allegedly hurting religious sentiments through his controversial posts on social media.
- In February 2019, he was jailed for 18 days in connection with a check bounce case for which he had to pay a fine of Rs 2.1 lakh.
- On 24 June 2020, a non-bailable case under the Information Technology Act and the Juvenile Justice Act, and POSCO was registered against Fathima for posting the video on social media. Where, his young children an 8-year-old girl, and a 14-year-old boy were seen painting a phoenix on his half-naked body. He was denied anticipatory bail in the POSCO case by the Kerela High Court, then, in August 2020, he moved to the apex court which also refused to accept his anticipatory bail plea saying that he was spreading obscenity using social media.On 26 June 2023, Rehana Fathima was acquitted of the charges by the Kerala High Court, which emphasized that a woman’s autonomy over her own body is a fundamental aspect of her right to equality and privacy. Rehana Fathima argued in her appeal before the court that her intention to engage in body painting was to make a political statement against the prevailing societal perception that the exposed upper body of women is always sexual, while the same does not apply to the exposed upper body of men. Justice Kauser Edappagath of the Kerala High Court, while acquitting Rehana, stated that there was no evidence to show that her children engaged in any real or simulated sexual acts for the purpose of sexual gratification.
On 26 June 2023, Rehana Fathima was acquitted of the charges by the Kerala High Court, which emphasized that a woman’s autonomy over her own body is a fundamental aspect of her right to equality and privacy. Rehana Fathima argued in her appeal before the court that her intention to engage in body painting was to make a political statement against the prevailing societal perception that the exposed upper body of women is always sexual, while the same does not apply to the exposed upper body of men. Justice Kauser Edappagath of the Kerala High Court, while acquitting Rehana, stated that there was no evidence to show that her children engaged in any real or simulated sexual acts for the purpose of sexual gratification. Facts/Trivia
- In 2018, the Kerala Muslim Jamaat Council expelled him from the Muslim community for trying to enter the Sabarimala Temple.
- He worked in BSNL till May 2020, after which BNL forced him to take voluntary retirement.
- He thinks that nudity shouldn’t be associated with sex, and it’s time we stop considering nudity vulgar.
- He is a left-wing activist and holds a progressive ideology.
- Although born in an orthodox Muslim family, he was fascinated by Hinduism. This is one of the reasons she used the name Surya Gayatri.
- Rehana is interested in men and women. He has shared about it on his Facebook page.
- According to his Facebook information, he is multilingual, speaking in English, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Urdu and Arabic.
Categories: Biography
Source: SCHOOL TRANG DAI
