48The sense of hopelessness overcame me, and in
my desperation, I turned to Mercy Ministries, a free-
of-charge Christian residential programme for girls
who need help with their life-controlling issues. At
Mercy, I learned life skills, how to set boundaries, and
processed my emotional wounds with the most loving
staff; a considerable part of the healing was through my
faith. The most memorable moment was when I finally
came to realise that the abuse was not my fault, and
that,asachild,Iknewnobetter.Igraduatedfromthe
programme in 2012.
Nowat29yearsold,Ihaveaburningdesireto
concentrate on the link between sex trafficking and
pornography, as it relates strongly to at-risk youth all
over the world. While forced prostitution is widely
recognised and feared, many are hardly cognisant of the
fact that they are a victim of sex trafficking, routinely
and fearfully performing under a watchful eye with
a camera in hand. Little do they know that their actswill then be sold for a paltry sum, a form of perverse
enjoyment for the viewer behind the screen.
I started my own clothing collection and with the
help of Elegantees – an organisation aiming to build
a bright future for victims of sex trafficking through
sewing work and a positive source of income – debuted
at New York Fashion Week on February 13, 2015. My
clothes are made by women in a safe house in Nepal
who are paid a fair wage. A large portion of profits are
given to aftercare services that work with survivors of
child sex trafficking.
Why Nepal? As I am of Indian descent, and was
born in Kolkata, this mission is close to my heart. Child
sex trafficking is arguably one of Nepal’s most pressing
social issues. The fairer-skinned Nepalese girls are
prized in Indian brothels, and a lack of education means
they are innocent to “stranger danger”. Between 5,000
and 15,000 Nepali girls are trafficked over the Indian
border every year, mostly from northern central Nepal.top A young girl entertains
drunken men, one of them
a police officer after duty
hours, at the Kandupatti
Brothel, in Dhaka,
Bangladesh. She ensures
that the customers get
everything they want...The most memorable moment was
when I finally came to realise that
the abuse was not my fault, and that,
as a child, I knew no better.PHOTO MAJORITY WORLD/UIG VIA GETTY IMAGES