“Younger queer people in Thailand are playful and smart. They use the word in a campy and self-loving way,” Nalin says. “On TikTok or in clubs, ‘ladyboy’ becomes a kind of performance of confidence.”
Outside of this reclamation, “ladyboy” can still hold many inaccurate, offensive, and othering connotations. “‘Ladyboy’ has been controversial because of how it’s been used, especially in entertainment and tourism,” Nalin says. “It was often a way to attract attention or get laughs, sometimes at the expense of real people’s dignity.”
The offensive caricature of “ladyboys,” often framing kathoey identity as the butt of a joke, has been woven into the exotic imaginary Thailand that is sold to Western tourists. When you think of popular representation of Thailand in Western media — like The Hangover Part II, which was set in Bangkok — casual and often derogatory mentions of “ladyboys” abound.
All of which brings us to the White Lotus of it all. “The show has this very clever tone, it’s funny, sharp, but also deeply human,” Nalin says. “I know that the idea of ‘ladyboy’ in Thailand has often been seen by Western audiences as something exotic, funny, or overly simplified. It’s something people joke about without always understanding the full picture. But in this season, even though there’s no actual ladyboy character (yet), I was really touched that Mike White chose to bring up the topic in such a thoughtful and emotional way.”
Of course, online, reactions to the monologue are divided, with some media critics pointing out that TERFS are using the monologue to spew transphobic vitriol. “Now, TERFs are looking to the latest White Lotus episode and proudly waving their autogynephilia flag once more,” Mey Rude writes for Out.
What is the difference between ladyboy and kathoey?
So why are the two terms different and where do they overlap? The answer is all about intracommunal versus external community discourse. Kathoey is the Thai term of an expansive category of beautiful and nuanced experiences of gender, whereas “ladyboy” is the imprecise English translation, just like if you ran a poem through Google translate.
“‘Kathoey’ is more local, soft, and layered,” Nalin tells Them. “‘Ladyboy’ on the other hand often came from foreigners, sometimes in admiration and sometimes in a way that felt like a show.”
But like queer and trans people across the globe, kathoey people across Thailand are reclaiming “ladyboy” as their own as a funny, sharp, and clever means of resistance. Some in the community even prefer the term “ladyboy” over kathoey; like all language related to identity, which label feels best is deeply personal and never one-size-fits-all.
“When I named the campaign ‘The Future is Ladyboy,’ I wasn’t trying to be provocative,” Nalin says. “I was trying to be honest. I believe the future belongs to people who are bold enough to be themselves, no matter what the world expects. Many of my friends in Thailand feel the same way. They use the word ‘ladyboy’ with love and mischief and pride. It’s not about erasing pain, it’s about creating joy on our own terms.”
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