When I was 15 years old and working on my passion to teach young children ignored by society, if I were accosted by a group of men for infringing upon their chauvinism, if I were scared to death for my safety and suddenly someone happened to intervene, I would have built a temple to thank the Good Samaritan for saving my life. On the other hand, if I was assaulted and left severely beaten on the wayside, I would have been dead or lived like the dead.
Neither of this happened to me or Sunita Krishnan. Although, 30 some years ago Sunita was exactly in that situation, no Good Samaritan, no taking her own life, no living in the shadows, but saving numerous lives and dedicating her life to the victims of rape and sex trafficking.
I saw Sunita first at an INK Conference in Goa. At 4’6” dressed in very casual clothes for a speaker, she took the stage and began her speech with a soft, timid first line. Within the first 2 minutes she stood taller than the entire audience by the anger in her voice, the passion in her work and the urgency in the call for action.
Prajwala, ‘the eternal flame’ began by turning a brothel in Hyderabad into a school for just 5 children of women in prostitution. It has rescued and rehabilitated 23,000 girls, opened a skills factory, sent some of them to schools/colleges, and given them a life of dignity. With multiple locations in AP & Telangana, the women and girls are all victims of rape or human trafficking.
The fire in Sunita’s belly is still burning from the anger that so much has not changed for girls/women or men and their sexual needs. She uses technology to shame the very men who use technology to go viral with their ‘rape-complishments’ and serve justice. She gets the larger community to come together in her war.
Sunita travels widely within and outside India on Government advisory committees in tackling the problem – Egypt,Thailand and South Korea.
Watch Amitabh Bachchan salute her on his show, Kaun Banega Crorepathi https://youtu.be/9G2JLgiiMJo. She deserved all the numerous awards for her work, her books, a dozen movies, the Karamveer, Padmashri and more as she marches along to cover the numerous miles ahead.
For her every day is women’s day. Salute to you Sunita Krishnan and Prajwala www.prajwalaindia.org.
Ushi's Take 
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