India’s First Transgender Modeling Agency

Though they’re officially recognized as a third gender by the Indian government, “hijras”—a transgender group specific to South Asia—still face harsh prejudices by mainstream society. Rudrani Chettri (who identifies as a hijra) is aiming to dissolve that discrimination through her charity, Mitr Trust. By raising £5,000, Chettri hopes to set up a transgender modeling agency to help hijras find sustainable and safe employment. Dazed recently …

The World of Holiday Gift Returns

Last week, holiday shoppers sent back over five million gifts through UPS alone. Many of these unwanted items never end up at their original retailer and, instead, they’re shipped to returns facilities that service various sellers. WIRED visited one of these returns specialists, Shorewood Liquidators, to find out exactly what goes on behind the scenes and where these millions of rejected purchases eventually end up.

Vale, Alan Rickman

Alan Rickman, the British actor best known for his roles as Hans Gruber and Severus Snape, has died at the age of 69 after battling cancer. Rickman began his career on stage, portraying the manipulative Vicomte de Valmont character in “Les Liaisons Dangereuses”—a role he later won a Tony Award for. A year later, he garnered international attention co-starring with Bruce Willis in the action …