Staying true to her name Rani Ko-HE-Nur, Sushant Divgikar brings in another victory for the trans community of India and broadens their horizon of work by becoming the first trans artiste to headline one of the biggest Navratri festivals in Gujarat, amazing over 3 lakh people with her dual voice.
While the country enjoyed the Navratri season with its cultural representation, history was being made in Surat—the city of diamonds—despite being taken by storm. Writing a remarkable page in the history of trans people in India, Sushant Divgikar, aka Rani Ko-HE-Nur, brought another victory for inclusion by becoming the first-ever trans artiste to headline one of the biggest Navratri celebrations in Surat, Gujarat.
With her four-octave vocal range, Rani became the first trans artist to headline a Navratri event mesmerising over 3 lakh people in 10 days. Headlining the Suvarn Navratri festival with renowned singers like Swasti Mehul, Dhwani Parikh, Hariom Gadhvi, and Osman Bir, Rani entertained the crowd with her dual voice, rewriting Indian history and paving a prominent path for the trans community. Entertaining all the garba enthusiasts, Rani sang and danced to popular songs like Har Har Shamboo, Vittal Vittal, and a few Gujarati numbers.
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With the trans community of India struggling to find an equal space in society, Sushant Divgikar aka Rani Ko-HE-Nur has been opening up new horizons for them to shine, and showcase their talent. Marking a trailblazing journey in the entertainment industry as an artiste (actor and singer), Rani has been delivering independent tracks and singing for web shows and movies, as well as headlining events for brands and the government of India. With songs like ‘Pari Hoon Main’, ‘Pehchaan’, ‘Saiyyan Illegal’, ‘Farebi Zindagi’, and more to her credit, Rani’s debut at Navratri has opened up a new path for trans artists.
For the unversed, it was in 2019 that Rani emerged as a rising star in the music industry with her powerful Pride Anthem “Love is Love”. Her subsequent release, “Diamond”, showcased her artistic range in 2020. In 2023, she broke barriers by becoming the first trans person to contribute to a Bollywood film soundtrack with her heartfelt rendition of “Pari Hoon Main”. 2024 marked a milestone year for Sushant, as she sang the esteemed National PurpleAnthem “Dhumal” written by Javed Akhtar, sang multiple songs for various web series, andcollaborated with Music composer, producer, and songwriter Mikey McCleary for Maati season 1 first track “Bawla”.
About Sushant Divgikar aka Rani Ko-HE-Nur: Artiste (Actor and Singer)
Beginning her musical journey with covers and original songs, Sushant Divgikar aka Rani Ko-HE-Nur gained acclaim for performing Pari Hoon Main in the Bollywood film Thank You For Coming, carving a unique path in the entertainment industry. Her collaborations with renowned artists like Sunidhi Chauhan and Ram Sampath have further solidified her presence in the music world.
As an actor, Sushant has delivered notable performances in projects such as Netflix India’s (Not) Every Office First Day (2021), Amazon Prime’s Rainbow Rishta (2023), and Amazon Mini TV’s Campus Beat (2023). In 2023, she took on a challenging role in Thank You for Coming, portraying a character navigating the complexities of gender transition with remarkable authenticity.
Succeeding in her acting and singing careers, Sushant gave vocals for the song Saiyyan Illegal for Netflix’s web show ‘Tribhuvan Mishra CA Topper’, released an independent song titled Pehchaan about dual identity, acted in the Sony Liv web series 36 Days in which she played the character of Tarun/Tara- a trans-person who aspires to be a drag queen, and sang multiple songs for the same, out of which three (Ab Tak, Farebi Zindagi, and Yeh Jahaan) trended on social media. She also collaborated with Music composer, producer, and songwriter Mikey McCleary for Maati season 1 first track “Bawla”. After five years, Sushant also reunited with her idol and legendary Usha Uthup to perform together in multiple cities.
Sushant’s impact is widely recognized: she was featured in the Forbes Top 100 India Digital Creators Power List in 2022 and won Breakthrough Artiste of the Year at the Cosmopolitan Bloggers Award 2024. Other accolades include being named to Rolling Stone’s #PowerWomen25 list in 2023, Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 in 2020, and GQ’s 50 Most Influential Young Indians in 2018. Invited to speak at Harvard’s India Conference in 2023, she addressed LGBTQ+ rights in India, further cementing her role as a youth icon for inclusivity.
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