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Popular Culture Review
reporter, notes that the 2005 Miss Tiffany pageant was “broadcast live on
national television'’ with the winner, Tiptantree Rujiranon, calling for the same
social rights for kathoey “as people of any other gender.’'24
Kathoey shows, such as the Miss Tiffany pageant, have become an
accepted part of Thai popular culture. This may be partly explained by the high
value which Thai popular culture places on physical beauty. According to Van
Esterik (2000:4), Thai society encourages “an essentialism of appearances or
surfaces," which has been strategically deployed by kathoey. The Buddhist
rationale of physical beauty as reflecting “merit store'’ and “moral purity” (Van
Esterick p. 84, cited in Jackson 2004) is significant as individuals can accrue
social capital, thereby improving their social legitimacy.
Interestingly, kathoey are increasingly becoming a dilemma for Thai
women since kathoey are redefining the ideal of Thai feminine beauty. Let me
further discuss this point. My Thai female informants acknowledged that
kathoey were generally more beautiful than women. Interestingly, while Thai
women spoke of kathoey as representing an ideal type of Thai “feminine” beauty
as depicted in the Miss Tiffany pageant, kathoey are still perceived as being
“male." As one informant told me, kathoey are men who behave like women. To
highlight this ambivalence, Thais tend to notice more the “tell-tale" signifiers of
kathoeyness than foreigners. These include the person’s height (kathoey are
generally taller than women and most men), size of their hands and feet,
shoulder width, and type of clothing. In keeping with their “exhibitionist” label,
kathoey are perceived as wearing shorter dresses than women, and portraying
exaggerated feminine gestures.
However, Aree Chaisatien from The Nation (January 17, 2002) argues
that kathoey sometimes can elude their gender before fellow Thais. Tang notes
that “As contestants glided across the stage in glittering ball gowns Saturday
night, one might never have guessed they were all bom boys. Only when they
open their mouths do their vocal cords reveal the truth.”25 In the same article,
Wararat Saengchai, a twenty one year old kathoey entrant in the 2005 Miss
Tiffany pageant, said: “Most people can’t tell because I’m very petite, but when
I talk, they know.”26 Commenting on Saengchai, Tang states that “If she keeps
quiet, her delicate features could fool anyone.”27
Given the moral power of aesthetics for Thais, it could be suggested
that kathoey monopolisation of the “beauty stakes" has given them a new-found
special status for influencing beauty trends. Unsurprisingly, kathoey can be
found among the ranks of the most beautiful Thai models. However, unlike Thai
women who are “affected by the judgment of their appearance,” (Van Esterick
p.129, cited in Jackson 2004), kathoey are seemingly free to “pursue beauty”
without succumbing to moral imposition.
The theme of the ideal Thai feminine type was challenged by famous
kathoey Muay Thai, boxer turned film star, in the 2003 box office smash hit
movie Beautiful Boxer. The movie is based on Parinya Charoenphol’s
(affectionately referred to as Nong Toom) personal saga of a poor village boy