The theme of the documentary film relates of how a young woman was gang raped by six young men and thrown out of a running bus. The incident took place in Delhi on 16 December 2012 and focused global attention of how women are treated in India. The young lady ultimately died inspite of the best efforts of the Government of India.
The producer M/s Leslee Udwin interviewed one of the rapist who expressed no remorse for his act of raping the young lady and said the lady was responsible and should not have resisted the rape. Adding fuel to the fire the lawyer of the accused stated “if my daughter or sister had to engage in pre-marital activities I would have taken her to my farm house and in front of my family put petrol on her and set her on fire”. The lawyer’s statement was widely condemned by all sections of the society. The young lady a medical student was returning home with a male friend. The matter is now sub-judice as the Indian Government obtained a court order and directed the BBC not to screen the documentary in India.
When asked on Hardtalk by BBC as to why she gave a platform for the rapist to be interviewed Mrs Udwin said it is important to know the mindset of these men who otherwise are normal, adding further she said it is imperative to know what is abnormal in these men who objectify women and justify whatever
they do. She says it is a war against women across the globe for example 96% of women in Egypt are sexually assaulted and 1 out of 3 teens in the age group of 13 to 17 are sexually assaulted in the UK.
She maintains she has done the documentary “India’s Daughter” for the women across the world who are subject to gender based violence, to all the protestors who protested this outrageous act in Delhi across the globe and to highlight the governments globally to fight gender based violence against women.
In India the situation of rape and gender based violence has increased and now 76% of the people are asking for tougher laws against rape. If an outsider can sensitize the world of this brutal act, why we the people of India cannot stand for our women. Besides we have 42 women Parliamentarians of all parties. These Parliamentarians have a role to play to ensure the safety and dignity of our women and we have a collective responsibility to remind them if they fail in their duties. Anyone is free to write to the Ministry of Women and Child Development headed by Maneka Gandhi. The ban in India was met with fierce opposition from the students and from all sections of the society and is likely to be overturned according to Mrs Udwin.
