SHEROES HANGOUT
WWW.SHEROESHANGOUT.COM
SHEROES
The Sheroes here, are women who have
fought to survive after receiving a debilitating
blow to their appearance and self-esteem by
some members of the society. These women
are on the way to becoming true fighters, who
have the courage to live, work and walk in the
midst of the society and force the society to
reevaluate its norms about beauty and
appearance. Unlike any other cafe or a general
restaurant, this one is going to be solely run
by the acid attack survivors.
These acid attack survivors come from various
backgrounds and diverse level of
competences. Being unprivileged some of
them perhaps have never been to a restaurant
before. To start with such a project, it is
indeed essentially needed to develop such a
model which can bring out productivity and
also multitudes of learning for the survivor.
The model has to be projected in a way that
can benefit the concerned acid attack survivor
to the most possible extent. Hence to
transform these acid attack survivors into
successfully empowered earning women
makes them an individual cult of inspiration
among other survivors to be seen as "Sheroes"
which sounds empowering in a strong positive
connotation.
HANGOUT
While this project has various impact, the
project has a model of a cafe / lounge because
it promotes social integration as well. People
from various sects of the society may come
with a purpose of having food, snacks, leisure
reading books, shopping, etc. to Sheroes
Hangout but at the same time they can also
acknowledge the proximity of acid attack cases
in India. In the previous routine of Sheroes
Hangout we have often organized events for
social interaction such as debate, book
launches, social awareness conferences,
music sessions, etc. through which general
public can be alerted of the consequences,
circumstances and aftermath of an acid attack.
The model can then be treated as an activity
center for people to take concerns on various
social issues in our society.
WHY ENTREPRENEURSHIP?
WHY SHEROES
We want to bring an end to this donation system
and do not want to continue this for long. So we
are trying to open up cafes and boutiques for the
survivors as a mean of their daily bread. This
would also act as rehabilitation for the survivors.
HOPE OF CHANGE
It may look small, but change has started to
happen. 'The Sheroes' Hangout in Agra, is a
heartwarming story of the significant
transformation that is taking place in the lives of
these young girls and those responsible for putting
it together. Ritu, Rupa and Neetu and most of
others no longer hide their faces. They wear it like
a medal, smiling proudly and confidently. They
pose for camera in front of the "selfie point"
outside the cafe. Often, acid attack survivors are
charged with provoking their attackers.
It is strange because the pain inflicted upon Ritu,
Rupa and Neetu was caused by a close relative.
The acid thrown on them shattered their lives, but
they refuse to break. The Sheroes, our heroes.
NECESSITY OF SHEROES
HANGOUT
Strangely, instead of the attacker being punished
or banished, they are cast out into a dark corner,
face covered and invisible to the world. In many
cases, like that of Lakshmi, the attacker even tried
to move on and got married while on bail. People
wear masks mostly to hide their motives, to resist
the society from prying into their mindscapes. But
what of those who are forced to hide behind masks
by the society they are supposedly a part of?
Where do they go to find succour?
In a world where your face increasingly decides
your brand value, those whose faces get scarred
beyond recognition will invariably be pushed to the
bottom of the heap. Once scarred such a girl is
generally expected to languish behind closed doors
for the remainder of her life. for, who will marry a
woman with a burnt face while arranged marriages
continue to find takers and lover-boys write paeans
on their beloved's 'blue eyes'?