Rape, not only the act even the word pierces through the head and the heart giving humanity a bitter death. This non-consensual act has lead to fear, dismay and insecurities making it’s way into every woman’s life. It has darkened the image of safe survival. Today all of them are skeptical to step out of their houses, have friendly interactions or even let their kids play without supervision. It isn’t limited to preventions, the after effects are even worse. The victims are scarred for life and the trauma becomes a constant feature of their dreams making the transition from a victim to a survivor nearly impossible.
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| Source: The Post Internazionale |
Such is the story of a girl named Ananya. She saw her life change after the act of rape while she was only 18 years of age.
It was 2007 when Ananya was transferred to the state’s Public School apparently a co educational school with different sections for boys and girls. She missed her previous co education City Montessori School which was also her favorite home away from home. Sena Public School held an orthodox culture where bold-faced girls were called names and were badgered. Ananya was more of an unconventional type. She believed that interacting with the opposite fraternity was good both for mental and educational growth. She insisted her principal to transfer her to the mixed batch where boys and girls could study together in harmony. She didn’t know that this idea will defame her and her family’s reputation. She was constantly being talked about and often dejected for her daring outlook.
2 years passed struggling to fit in. Then came the final year of her schooling. Ananya’s father enrolled her to a coaching institute to foster her preparation for her board exams. The coaching institute taught Computer Science. The institute was owned by a professor named Mr. Deshpandey(name changed) who was married and had a kid. A few days after attending his classes Ananya sensed that Mr. Deshpandey(name changed) was strangely attracted to her. In no time he started resorting to brush passes and tender touches, making her uncomfortable. She avoided contact and tried maintaining a safe distance assuming it’ll fade away soon.
One day Ananya reached the class and saw no one except her teacher. She was surprised since it was the lab day where all the students did practicals post theory sessions. When inquired where was everyone, she was directed to another class and before she could proceed, he held her hand tight and expressed his sinful intimate feelings for her. She was taken aback and struggled to get away from his grip. The moment she could, she immediately left the place.She was too scared to mention this to anyone and chose to keep quite and forget that it happened. But it was not over for her teacher. He started threatening to kill her family if she didn’t give in to his dark desires. Ananya out of naivety and fear was forcefully assaulted not once but many times for a year. He out of euphemism termed it an ‘affair’ and gained a guilt free pass. He bragged about his association with Ananya and made her an object of humiliation amongst her peers.
That marked the time of degradation for Ananya. She was in the state of self pity and melancholy. She even tried killing herself just to get over the trauma but the fact that her family will have to bear repercussions stopped her. She thought leaving this town and moving away from the crowd might make a difference. She gathered all her strength and gave UPTU. She took up engineering in a different city yet her mind was constantly fighting a battle. She felt unsafe in crowed locations, loathed physical touches, grew more and more cynical and trusted no one. Her fears grew so strong that she couldn’t even handle the presence of her own father just because he was a male.
Ananya mentioned this incident to no one fearing that she will be criminalized and outlawed by the hypo critic and conventional society. After completing 2 years of her engineering like this ‘The Day’ came when Ananya gained the strength to quit all of it and make an attempt to restore her life. She decided to take up the study of minds that’s Psychology and get to the core of her mind as well as others and find out a way to make peace with her existing state. She didn’t want rape to take away her right to normal living. She wanted to rise from this state of being a victim and prove to be a survivor. She called home after giving her fourth semester exams and expressed her urge to quit engineering and pursue Psychology. Fortunately her decision had her family’s consent. Ananya found a goal and began chasing it.
Ananya is now about to complete her course and has dedicated herself to helping other empower themselves. 8 years of depression, 4 years of counseling, other men, shopping, eating, friends, escaping, nothing made a difference but her will to get back on her feet and put her past behind transformed her life forever.
Ananya’s story and strength tells us that giving up is neither an option nor a solution.
