Meet Indian Woman Who Faked Being A Man For 36 Years To Protect Her Daughter. A crafty woman reportedly spent 36 years pretending to be a man to protect her daughter and keep herself safe from stalkers. S.Petchiammal from the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India, made the unusual sacrifice for decades while raising the child alone. Married when she was 20, she tragically lost her husband while pregnant with his daughter only 15 days after their wedding — and quickly found life as a single mum a struggle in the strict, traditional and sometimes unsafe environment of her village. Petchiammal eventually decided to move away, and began to cut her hair and change her clothing after a personal visit to Tiruchendur Murugan Temple, where she rechristened herself with the name ‘Muthu’. The devoted mum then spent the rest of her life keeping her true identity a secret from everyone but her daughter and close members of family as she took on a range of manual jobs, including work i...