I’m a trailblazing Bangladeshi-American actress, model, activist, and storyteller whose career bridges performance, advocacy, and public health. In 2021, I made history as Bangladesh’s first openly transgender news anchor, challenging social stigma and becoming a symbol of hope for trans communities across South Asia.
My artistic journey expanded globally through my Off-Broadway debut in the Pulitzer Prize-nominated play Public Obscenities, earning the Drama Desk Ensemble Award in 2023 for my emotionally layered and authentic performance. In 2022, I became the first Bangladeshi trans model to walk in New York Fashion Week, where I merged fashion and activism with pride.
Beyond the spotlight, I hold Master’s degrees in Public Health and Social Science and have served as Chair of the Trans Steering Committee, focusing on grassroots leadership and emergency relief. My humanitarian work during the COVID-19 pandemic earned me the Hero Award in 2020.
I continue to develop inclusive healing practices, including a Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) module titled Healing Through Dance, designed for trauma-impacted LGBTQIA+ individuals, immigrants, and women. I’m also currently writing a Bengali-language script, Roshni, exploring love, identity, and societal judgment through the eyes of a trans woman.
With every role, every word, and every step, I remain committed to truth, transformation, and the unapologetic celebration of humanity.
Early life
I was born in 1991 in Mongla, Bagerhat, a quiet riverside town in southern Bangladesh. My childhood unfolded there, surrounded by natural beauty but constrained by rigid social expectations. As I entered adolescence, I moved to Narayanganj, an industrial town near Dhaka, where those expectations only grew heavier. Assigned male at birth, I always felt different in how I dreamed, moved, and related to the world. My early years were marked by bullying, fear, and silence but also by imagination and inner truth. Dance became my rebellion. Poetry, my comfort. Television, my mirror. Though I often faced violence and rejection, I slowly began to claim my identity with courage. My journey toward becoming Tashnuva was neither easy nor quick. It was forged through solitude, struggle, and resilience—but also through fleeting moments of kindness that helped me survive. Those early years shaped the storyteller and advocate I am today.
Education
I began my academic journey in Mongla, Bagerhat, completing my Secondary School Certificate from T.A. Faruque High School. I later moved to Narayanganj, where I completed both my undergraduate and first Master’s degree in Social Science (MSW) at Tolaram Government College, under the National University of Bangladesh.Motivated by a deep commitment to justice, I earned my Master’s in Public Health (MPH) from the BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health. Navigating these academic paths as a trans woman in conservative environments was never easy but education became both my resistance and my liberation.
Career
My career has been shaped by resilience, artistry, and a refusal to be erased. In 2021, I became Bangladesh’s first openly transgender news anchor, stepping into history not just to report news but to make it.
Before that, I worked at the grassroots level as a case management officer, counselor, field researcher, facilitator, and trainer, focusing on LGBTQIA+ rights, mental health, gender-based violence, and public health.
As an artist, I’ve built a multidisciplinary path across film, stage, runway, and literature. In 2022, I became the first Bangladeshi trans model to walk in New York Fashion Week, and in 2023, I made my Off-Broadway debut in the Pulitzer-nominated play Public Obscenities. That role allowed me to express my lived experience through layered, powerful storytelling.In 2024, I published my debut poetry collection, Parikh (Lover) , a lyrical exploration of love, loss, and identity. I continue to develop a Dance Movement Therapy module for LGBTQIA+ communities and am currently writing Roshni, a Bengali-language script centering on a trans woman’s journey through love, societal judgment, and survival.
Personal Life
I was born in Bagerhat and raised in Narayanganj, where tradition often clashed with my truth. Becoming me meant surviving rejection, reclaiming joy, and walking a path of radical honesty.
Now based in New York, I carry stories in my bones—of love, grief, and resistance. Outside the spotlight, I find healing in poetry, movement, and moments with my chosen family. I live for tenderness, truth, and the dream of a world where everyone belongs.
From Bangladesh to New York, I carry stories in my bones of love, loss, and resilience. Outside the spotlight, I find peace in poetry, movement, and quiet moments with my chosen family. I live for tenderness, truth, and the dream of a world where everyone belongs.
Skills & Languages
As a multidisciplinary artist, advocate, and public health professional, I navigate the intersections of storytelling, movement, media, and healing. My work spans stage and screen, grassroots activism, creative writing, therapeutic practice, and academic research. Each of these skills is woven with intention—to shift narratives, center marginalized voices, and imagine new possibilities of care, dignity, and truth.
Performance & Creative Arts
• Stage and screen acting (including Off-Broadway, international film, and queer theater)
• Voice modulation, character embodiment, improvisation, and script analysis
• Poetry, prose, scriptwriting, and spoken word performance
• Dance and somatic storytelling through therapeutic and cultural lenses
• Public speaking, live anchoring, and hosting across diverse platforms
Advocacy, Healing & Community Leadership
• LGBTQIA+ rights advocacy and trans-inclusive leadership
• Trauma-informed counseling and mental health peer support
• Workshop facilitation and storytelling for social change
• Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) practices for healing, identity, and resilience
• Cultural facilitation and working with immigrant, trans, and marginalized communities
Public Health & Research
• Field research with underserved populations
• Qualitative and ethnographic methodologies
• Health equity, gender-based violence, and social determinants of health
• Program planning, monitoring, and evaluation
• Public health documentation and academic writing
Media & Communication
• News presenting and on-air journalism as Bangladesh’s first openly transgender news anchor
• Panel moderation, interviews, and cultural commentary
• Content creation for advocacy, campaigns, and visibility
• Grant and proposal writing for grassroots and global initiatives
Technical Proficiency
• Microsoft Office Suite | Google Workspace | Zoom
• Basic video and audio editing
• Social media strategy, storytelling, and digital outreach