Even as gay activism grows in India and some slowly find the courage to come out of the closet, many from the community – especially the well educated and well heeled in the cities – are opting for expensive sex change procedures, say doctors.

“You may ask why, but it is a fact that gays are going for a gender makeover these days. I have done several cases in Delhi and Kolkata,” Ashutosh Misra, a senior reconstructive surgeon here, told IANS.