Ibrahim Rayintakath for BI
As a child growing up in Tehran, Shayan Varamini didn't know what it meant to be transgender.
Assigned female at birth, Varamini always felt drawn to dressing boyishly. He'd once had romantic feelings for a girl in his school, leading him to assume he might be a lesbian.
But in Iran, where same-sex relations can lead to imprisonment, corporal punishment, and even execution, he needed to be sure.