Founder of SheSays, Trisha Shetty Champions Survivors’ Rights in India

What is one defining moment in your career or life that empowered you to create change, and how has it shaped the path you’re on today?

In December 2016, I received a call from a distressed father whose four-year-old child had been sexually abused by a neighborhood store owner’s relative. The father had heard about my NGO, SheSays through someone who had attended our gender sensitisation seminars that we conduct across schools and the workplace. This family forever impacted my career and work and redefined why we show up and do the work we do. In the earlier stages of starting the NGO SheSays, I was naively convinced that if we showed up and did all the work necessary, built solidarity and nexus of support, and served our community – justice would be guaranteed for survivors of sexual violence. Soon enough, I learned that this work is about doing all the work necessary to take 5 steps forward, only to watch the decline of hard-earned rights and take multiple steps back. I had to question why we show up and what we are showing up for, when all the hard work would get wiped out through corruption, money to influence outcomes, and political leadership failing women’s right to equality and safety. Holding onto optimism and joy became a daily task.

From the first conversation I had with the child’s father who had been raped, he said all he wants is justice for his kid. Had another adult done the right thing & reported the abuser (who was a serial offender), his daughter perhaps would have been safe. He saw it as his moral obligation to not just ensure that his kid gets justice but the abuser, who’s a danger to other vulnerable kids, is off the streets.

This family moved homes due to intimidation & threats. The dad quit his job, and the mom put her life at a standstill, all so they could focus on seeing this case through till the very end. Despite the court case and hardships continuing for years, they didn’t stop showing up. Their resilience and sense of service to their child and community became our driving force to keep showing up, not for the perfect end result; but because showing up is a testament to your own humanity.

My team and I followed them through the entire journey by providing them with support. From helping them file their complaints in police stations, to getting the child medical care in hospitals & legal justice in courtrooms. The battle continued for 3 years. The family showcased the best of humanity, despite being subject to the worst.

3 years later, they received justice. The accused was convicted to 10 years in jail – https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/mumbai-youth-gets-10-year-jail-term-in-pocso-case/articleshow/71212400.cms . This media article covered this case.

The process of fighting for justice is arduous & unfairly exhausting. The process breaks you and tries your patience and will. It takes incredible resilience to fight till the very end.

Their case shaped my career in realizing that the fight shouldn’t be focussed on the end result, the fight is the journey of showing up and commitment to self and community. The fight is refusing to contribute to your own dehumanization by accepting violence and injustice as a way of life.

What is the legacy you hope to leave behind as a changemaker and leader in your industry?

The legacy I hope to leave behind is that I tried. That I showed up in service of myself and those around me. And that I did it from a place of deep-rooted joy. It’s been over 10 years of doing this work. I spent many years marinating in suffering and deep states of depression; not just because I was bearing witness to many cases of rape and sexual violence and murder of women and children. But also because I was being subject to a barrage of death and rape threats for “daring to speak up and dissent” against political leadership that was breeding a climate of violence against women belonging to religious minority communities in India. As successful as I was on the work front, despite the international recognition I received for my contribution to gender rights, I was miserable and severely depressed. I had to hit reset and do the work on myself, and my mental health to reclaim joy. I hope my legacy will be one where I lead in a way that inspires others to tap into all shades of their humanity – their righteous rage to denounce violence, their compassion to show up for community, and critically their joy that will fuel them to fight the good fight till our very last breath.

Who are three women that inspire you?

My sister, told me early on, when I was receiving a lot of threats and harassment for my activism – do you plan to quit? I said no. She said, you have a choice, you can quit and do something else that makes you happy. No point in continuing activism and working for human rights if you’re miserable in the process. I said, no I will not quit. To which she said, good, then do the work necessary to build your resilience and protect yourself. Don’t complain about how it’s not fair, don’t expect things to be easy. This is what it is.

Asha Devi – Nirbhaya’s mother, told me that she wakes up every morning ready for a “sangharsh” righteous fight, in the evening she is exhausted and goes to sleep, only to wake up the next morning to fight the good fight again. I learned the virtue of never giving up and always showing up from her.

Women I met during the anti-CAA/ NRC protests in India – I was being targeted by the police for providing legal counsel to the peaceful protestors who were dissenting against fascist policies being put forth by the government. As the police surrounded me and tried to put me in a police van, I was enveloped by random women I had never met before. They kept asking the police “Kashaala” which translates to WHY? They were defiant in the face of power and protected me with their bodies. I am used to people bearing witness to you being subject to violence and being passive bystanders. This was the first time I was witness to solidarity thanks to a group of women who refused to stand by passively. In that moment, the power of community and women was reinforced down to my bones.