A Thai transgender woman sparked a mass brawl when she stood on a nightclub table to dance only to be hit on the head with a baton.

Arwut Thongkham, 22, and her friends were drinking at the popular nightclub in Songkhla province, southern Thailand, on May 5 when they were confronted by bouncers who told them to 'dance appropriately'.

An argument ensued which erupted into scuffles where the guards were seen trading blows with the male crossdresser.

Arwut said: 'I was confused because I believe we were dancing appropriately at our own table, and the Malay tourists at the other table even praised our performance and gave us tips.'

The trans person added that her group carried on dancing 'without irritating the other customers' but were again scolded by the bouncers and dragged outside the dance floor.

CCTV footage shows Arwut and her friends being ushered to a hallway, where they were seen having a heated argument with bar staff. The dispute escalated into a physical fight, with one ladyboy apparently shoving a bouncer, who then retaliated by whacking her on the head with his baton.

After the brawl, Arwut said she waited outside the pub to talk to either the manager or her attacker. However, with no apology forthcoming, she decided to report to the police instead, but was told to see a doctor first for her injuries.

She also complained to local news reporters because she was 'scared she would not receive justice', adding she could not understand why she had been attacked.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Chatchai Bamrungkorn, deputy superintendent of the Kho Hong Police Station, said he has received a report of the incident.

He said: 'We have already identified the alleged attacker. We want to be fair to both sides and investigate the case thoroughly to ensure that justice is served.'

Meanwhile, the pub's manager Aed said that some of Arwut's friends were underage - a claim denied by the group who were regulars at the club.

Aed alleged that the ladyboys often caused trouble while drunk and would dance on the tables, violating newly implemented rules at the bar that prohibited the act.

She added that they had given Arwut several warnings which were ignored, so the group were dragged outside and asked to leave.

However, Aed distanced the club from the attack, saying the suspect named Ice was merely a former bouncer.

The manager said: 'I was confused because Ice has not been a bouncer at the pub for a long time. I don't want to get involved since we believe the incident was a personal conflict between the woman and him.'

Aed said staff also tried to break up the fight, but were hurt doing so.