She Grew Up In Mumbai's Red-Light Area And Has A Wonderful Story To Tell

"Growing up, I faced a lot of discrimination," says a Mumbai woman on the Humans of Bombay Facebook page. "I had everything going against me - a dark skinned Indian girl from a red light area," she explains. However, this woman's interpretation of beauty, life and the place she calls home is beyond inspiring.

Born in Kamathipura, considered as one of Asia's largest red light districts, the unnamed woman describes her journey through life. In a post shared some 18 hours ago, she talks about being teased at school for her skin colour and being raped by a teacher when she was just 10.

"Our education system is such that we're not even taught about what a good touch or a bad touch is, so how was I to know? I was too scared to tell anyone until the age of 16 when I began therapy and realized that I had been raped," she says on Facebook.

Eventually, theatre became her coping mechanism. "I'm part of a street play group where we go around explaining through theatre what a 'bad touch is' or about menstruation and sex," she says. "So many times, the cops in Bombay have shooed us away because they hear the word 'sex' - it's so infuriating that we live in a place where we'd rather let our daughters get raped then explaining these things just because it's considered a taboo."

She also mentions travelling to San Francisco for a programme called 'Girl on the Run' with the help of Kranti, a Mumbai-based NGO.

However, what's most impressive about this young woman is the way she describes Kamathipura, her home.

We'll let you read her post in its entirety to know why Kamathipura holds such a special place in her heart and her wonderful take on beauty and acceptance.