Pakistan's first transgender TV newsreader says she had to stop herself from screaming with joy when she learned she'd got the job.
Marvia Malik, a journalism graduate who has also worked as a model anchored her first show on private broadcaster Kohenoor on Friday, after three months of training.
She told the BBC she was moved to tears when she was offered the job.
"The dream that I saw for myself, I was able to climb on the first stair to achieving it," she said.
The BBC reported transgender people face discrimination in Pakistan and many struggle to find employment.
Some are forced into begging, dancing or prostitution to earn money.
Ms Malik said she hoped her work would help improve the lives of Pakistan's transgender community.
"Our community should be treated equally and there must not be any gender discrimination. We should be given equal rights and be considered ordinary citizens, instead of third-gender."
She added that her family knows she has modelled and now works a newscaster. "But they have still disowned me."
The owner of Kohenoor, Junaid Ansari, told VOA news that Ms Malik had been selected on merit, not on gender issues.
Pakistan's Senate has this month voted to support a bill protecting the rights of transgender people, and allowing them to determine their own gender identity.
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