Together they did

For the women in sex work, their collective has meant drawing strength in numbers, drawing courage from each other, and challenging injustice, with the full confidence that there is someone out there who cares and who will stand with them. Thus together, they have been able to do much, against the different kinds of exploitation they were being subjected to.

In the district of Uttar Kannada, many of the women lived in constant fear of exposure in the tabloid press. These newspapers had written about some of the women, exposed their identities, and brought them distress within their own families and communities. Many women suffered from this, but were hesitant to take action Finally, when a popular tabloid wrote explicitly about one of the women, the collective encouraged her  to challenge the journalist. She not only filed a case in court against him, but many women from all over the district came together, to support her and do a public demonstration against the journalist. The journalist at first tried to scare them away, and later offered some money to her, to withdraw. But more important than the money, was the need to stop such writing in future. Ultimately, the paper was forced to shut down.  Within their communities, these women were lauded for having acheived something, which even the most influential men had not been able to acheive.

In another instance, the women stumbled on a racket of pornographic film making, and brought it to the notice of the local authorities. When they tried to hush it up, they sought the intervention of higher authorities and had it addressed.

In this way, through their collective, the women are emerging from the margins, into the mainstream society. They address issues, which affect not just them, but also other people, and they seek redressal for their grievances from within the mainstream societies.