'Some cricketers sent me n*de pictures' - Anaya Bangar shares horrifying experience with senior cricketers post gender transformation

Former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar's son Aryan Bangar, who is now known as Anaya Bangar, went through a sex transformation a few months back. Anaya revealed it through a video posted on her Instagram handle. 

During an interview with The Lallantop, Anaya Bangar spoke about her identity, acceptance in the family, struggles and issues like transphobia, and other issues present within cricket. She said that for her identity, she not only had to face mental torture but also sexual harassment.

"Some cricketers, who have played cricket at a big level, sent me nude pictures. Just because they got to know about my trans identity, and they were expecting something to happen after this."

"I just wanted to be safe. I didn't want anyone to look at me with bad intentions, so I avoided the whole situation. These people were never friends. And I don't want to say what platform this happened on, but it happened," she said.

When asked about her experience as a cricketer, Anaya shared her experiences and what she had to face as a sportsperson. 

"Even when I was in the UK, some people were supportive. And the same people who supported me earlier, changed later and those who were against me from the beginning, became even more against me. They used to abuse me in front of my teammates. They used to say, what is this trans-vans. This is nothing, this is all nonsense. And then the same man would later come and sit next to me during the match and ask me for my pictures."

In November 2024, Anaya Bangar shared her gender transition journey through several stories and posts on Instagram. Her transition was widely discussed on the internet. Anaya said that she is undergoing hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Anaya wrote a long, emotional post on her Instagram account on August 23, 2024.

"Cricket has been a part of my life from a young age. Growing up, I saw my father representing and coaching the country and soon I started dreaming of following in his footsteps. My father's dedication, discipline and love for cricket was an inspiration to me. Cricket was my love, my ambition and my future. I spent my whole life honing my skills, hoping that one day I would get a chance to represent the country like my father."

"I never thought I would have to give up the sport that has been my passion, my love and my support. But now I am facing a painful reality. As a trans woman, being on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has changed my body a lot. My muscle strength, muscle memory and playing ability, which I depended on, were all declining," she further wrote.