Chennai, May 6 (IANS) 'I feel like a butterfly,' said Rose Venkatesan, 30, India's first transgender television anchor who underwent a sex change operation to become a woman.

Rose boarded a Bangkok flight March 17 and came back as a woman after undergoing a sex reassignment surgery at a cost of $3,500 to transform into a woman.

'I feel now I have better brand appeal. Now I am India's first sex change television personality,' Rose told IANS here on the sidelines of a press meet.

'I am a focused person. The only challenge as a woman I will be facing now is being approached by men,' she added.

It is now 50 days since she became a woman.

'It is no more a double life. I am feeling like a butterfly. I am at the peak of happiness. I had dreamt of this day since my childhood,' Rose told reporters.

A mechanical engineer with a master's degree in biomedical engineering from the Louisiana Tech University in the US, Rose faced a gender dilemma at a young age.

She spent her school and college years immersed in books.

Belonging to a middle class Tamil family, Rose was brought up as a boy and educated at two elite schools in Chennai.

'After my education I decided to be myself. I understood that nobody can take away my degree and knowledge,' Rose said.

On the timing of the sex change, she said: 'I wanted to become a celebrity first and then undergo a sex change.'

She said after struggling a bit she got the chance to host a talk show on Vijay TV and later migrated to Kalaignar TV.

Speaking about her future plans, Rose said: 'I have readied a feature film script based on the happenings in my life. The film will be made in Tamil and English.'

Rose is also hoping to make a mark in Hollywood.

Rose does not plan to change her name. 'Rose is a beautiful name,' she said and added: 'I don't want to remember my original name. That's the name I want to forget.'

Rose said she is happy to have played a significant role in bringing the plight of transgenders to the spotlight.

'I will continue to focus on transgender issues,' Rose said, adding that she is okay with people referring to her as a transgender or a woman, but would prefer the latter.