Bhoomi Harendran

Bhoomi Harendran
භූමි හරේන්ද්‍රන්
Born (1990-08-16) August 16, 1990
Wanatha, Borella, Sri Lanka
EducationD. S. Senanayake College
OccupationsTransgender activist, Actress
OrganizationNational Transgender Network
Height181 cm (5 ft 11 in)
TitleExecutive Director at the National Transgender Network
AwardsAPCOM Hero Award (2021)

SAARC Award for Best Actor (2017)

'Kusalatha Sammanaya' (Merit Award) (2018) at the Sarasavi Film Awards

Bhoomi Harendran (Sinhala: භූමි හරේන්ද්‍රන්; formerly Asmugodapathiranage Kumudu Darshana Kumara Sinhala: අස්මුගොඩපතිරණගේ කුමුදු දර්ශන කුමාර; born 16 August 1990) is a Sri Lankan transgender, actress, human rights activist and advocate for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer (LGBTIQ+) community in Sri Lanka.[1] She is the first openly transgender person in Sri Lanka.[2][3]

Career

Considered one of Sri Lanka's foremost human rights defenders for the LGBTIQ+ community, Harendran is the executive director of the National Transgender Network of Sri Lanka, a non-governmental organization dedicated to safeguarding human rights, health, and empowerment for transgender people across the island.[3][4][5][6][7]

She pioneered in advocacy for the Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC), which led the Ministry of Health and the Registrar General's Department to issue circulars in 2016, which established a legal and administrative process for transgender individuals to officially change their gender and name on official documents. She also worked as an HIV/AIDS activist, focusing on prevention, sexual health, and rights within marginalized populations who are susceptible for sexually transmitted diseases.[3][8][9] For her advocacy work, Harendran received the 2021 Transgender Hero Award from Asia Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health (APCOM).[10]

She also served as a subcommittee member of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka and has advocated for police reform, including the issuance of a 2022 Police Department circular providing guidelines on the appropriate treatment, searching, and detention of transgender individuals.[11] She also serves as a Brand Ambassador for Emerge Lanka, an organization dedicated to empowering survivors of abuse.[12][13]

In film and television

Harendran is known for her role 'Shehan' in the film Frangipani (Sayapethi Kusuma)[3][14] which made her the first transgender person to win the SAARC Award for Best Actor (2017),[5] in addition to winning the Kusalatha Sammanaya (Merit Award) (2018) at the Sarasavi Film Awards.[5]

Harendran has been featured in the Being Human documentary series launched by Daily Mirror, in partnership with the legal pro-bono organization iProbono,[15] NTN's Pon Naha official music video[16] also featuring Amelia Quincy/ Amanda Melani de Alwis, Ayodya Heenatigala, Buddhi Edirisinghe, GaaPink, Navoda Bennett and Vasisamudradevi, and Abhisheka Wimalaweera's hit single Bhoomiyata thawama pana thiyenawa.[17]

In 2026, more than 10,000 movie critiques rated Harendran at 24% in 'Films.lk', ranking her the lowest ever for any actor or actress in the history of Sinhala Cinema Database.[18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Joshi, Yuvraj (2016-08-15). ""All Five Fingers Are Not the Same"". Human Rights Watch.
  2. ↑ "Bhoomi Harendran, the first Sri Lankan Transgender who came out from the closet". Kaushalya Ariyarathne. 1 April 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Bhoomi becomes first Transgender woman in Sri Lanka to host a political talkshow". LNW Lanka News Web. 2020-07-18. Archived from the original on August 7, 2022. Retrieved August 4, 2026.
  4. ↑ "National Transgender Network Sri Lanka (NTNSL)". Bridge to Equality. March 26, 2023. Archived from the original on October 15, 2023. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  5. 1 2 3 "Sympathy is not what we want: Bhoomi Harendran". Latest in the News Sphere | The Morning. 2018-10-14. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  6. ↑ "A safe space for the Trans and Queer worker community - IFWEA". 2024-01-14. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  7. ↑ "Destigmatising LGBTQIA+ Healthcare". Latest in the News Sphere | The Morning. 2021-08-02. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  8. ↑ "For 'Mind and Soul': Sri Lanka Eases Way To Legal Recognition of Transgender People". Global Press Journal. 2016-12-18. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  9. ↑ "Towards Ending AIDS: National HIV/STI Strategic Plan Sri Lanka, 2018-2022" (PDF). Ministry of Health Sri Lanka. October 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 6, 2024. Retrieved August 4, 2026.
  10. ↑ "ආසියානු පැසිෆික් TRANSGENDER HERO සම්මානය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ භූමි හරේන්ද්‍රන්ට". Sri Handa News Official Web Site (in Sinhala). December 2, 2021. Archived from the original on December 3, 2021. Retrieved August 4, 2026.
  11. ↑ "EQUAL GROUND on the amended Police circular". Latest in the News Sphere | The Morning. 2023-11-07. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  12. ↑ "Emerge — Bhoomi Harendran". Emerge. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  13. ↑ Perera, Avindi (4 May 2023). "In the words of Bhoomi Harendran: "We need to transform digital spaces, including laws on online violence"". UN Women. Retrieved December 12, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ↑ "IPPF Youth Champion stars in movie | The Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka". www.fpasrilanka.org. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  15. ↑ "Beauty and complexity of Being Human". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  16. ↑ "Pon Naha - Don't call me names!". NTN Sri Lanka. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
  17. ↑ "Thawama Pana Thiyenawa තවම පණ තියෙනවා Visharada Abhisheka Wimalaweera ( Official Music Video)". Abhisheka Wimalaweera. 12 November 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
  18. ↑ "Bhoomi Harendran - භූමි හරේන්ද්‍රන්". Sinhala Cinema Database. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
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