0:00:02 > 0:00:06This programme contains scenes which some viewers may find upsetting.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16Last December, cities across India
0:00:16 > 0:00:19were engulfed in a series of protests.
0:00:20 > 0:00:24They stemmed from the death of a young woman
0:00:24 > 0:00:27who'd been brutally gang-raped on board a moving bus.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31With the story making global headlines, millions
0:00:31 > 0:00:36around the world were shocked at the viciousness of the rape.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40One of those was Radha Bedi, a young British Indian.
0:00:42 > 0:00:44'..Even the death penalty.'
0:00:44 > 0:00:47It's just not fair, it's not right, it's horrible.
0:00:48 > 0:00:52Now Radha's going to India to discover
0:00:52 > 0:00:55the tougher reality of life for young women there.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58She'll meet girls who have suffered appalling brutality.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00I try and tell myself, "All right,
0:01:00 > 0:01:03"they've taken her face but they haven't taken her heart."
0:01:05 > 0:01:09She'll meet men who blame women for the violence they suffer.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12If she'd been respectable, this would never have happened to her.
0:01:12 > 0:01:18She'll try to understand what's underpinning all this violence.
0:01:18 > 0:01:22What's really clear and urgent is that we need to value women
0:01:22 > 0:01:24in this country, equally.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28And she'll find herself caught up in her own struggle for justice,
0:01:28 > 0:01:32after she was sexually harassed on a previous visit to India.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35You freeze, you're in shock.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38But I want to see if the police will take my case seriously.
0:01:49 > 0:01:5328-year-old Radha lives at home with her parents.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57In a few days' time, she's heading off for India.
0:01:57 > 0:02:02And she's starting to worry she's not really prepared for the trip.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05That one is a bit too sexy, I suppose.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09Yeah, that's more like it. I could wear that.
0:02:09 > 0:02:11I'll not take my shorts.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14Radha's been to India before.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17But this is the first time she's going without her family.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19So, not too short.
0:02:21 > 0:02:23I am nervous.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27Before I've been to India and, you know, I go as a tourist,
0:02:27 > 0:02:28I visit my family.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32But I don't really get to see
0:02:32 > 0:02:35and understand what daily life is like for women.
0:02:35 > 0:02:39I want to find out what it's like to be an Indian woman living in India -
0:02:39 > 0:02:43what do they face, what battles do they face?
0:02:43 > 0:02:46I had no idea that this is...something like
0:02:46 > 0:02:49what we've seen happen just a few months ago.
0:02:49 > 0:02:55'An outpouring of grief on Delhi's streets, stunned into silence...'
0:02:55 > 0:02:58A girl just went out to the cinema, came back and she lost her life.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00But I suppose sitting in the comfort of your living room,
0:03:00 > 0:03:02you're always that little bit more removed.
0:03:02 > 0:03:06You can switch off the TV and that's it, you don't have to deal with it.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09'The brutal assault on the young medical intern has shocked Indians.'
0:03:09 > 0:03:12It is my motherland and I don't want to think that bad things happen.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16But I guess this trip I am scared about what I'm going to find out
0:03:16 > 0:03:18and actually be faced with the truth.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23Are you going to miss me? Straight question?
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Um...yes and no.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29That sounds like a no to me!
0:03:30 > 0:03:32You've got to be really smart when you're in India.
0:03:32 > 0:03:37Just watch yourself, be very vigilant - don't trust anybody.
0:03:37 > 0:03:39Cos I don't trust anybody there.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43Naturally, it's going to worry me but you need to look after yourself.
0:03:52 > 0:03:54Delhi - India's capital.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57A city teeming with more than 20 million people.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03An ever-expanding middle-class rubs shoulders with
0:04:03 > 0:04:05millions of poorer migrants.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09In this overcrowded metropolis,
0:04:09 > 0:04:13sexual violence is often feared by women.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22Radha's arriving in a place which now has the dubious reputation
0:04:22 > 0:04:24of being India's rape capital.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38It was on a cold December evening last year that a horrifying story
0:04:38 > 0:04:41of brutality began to unfold.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44It made headline news in India and then around the world.
0:04:44 > 0:04:49'Our top story at this hour. Four men who allegedly gang-raped
0:04:49 > 0:04:53'and then brutally beat up a medical student in Delhi last night
0:04:53 > 0:04:56'have been identified by the police.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00'The victim, a 23-year-old medical student, is now in hospital
0:05:00 > 0:05:03'where her condition is said to be extremely critical.'
0:05:07 > 0:05:10On her first night in Delhi, Radha is meeting up with
0:05:10 > 0:05:13an old friend, Vandana, outside a luxury shopping mall.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18It's here where the rape incident began.
0:05:18 > 0:05:23A young student, Jyoti Singh Pandey, had gone with a male friend
0:05:23 > 0:05:24to see the film Life Of Pi.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30When they were trying to get home at around 9:00 at night, they were
0:05:30 > 0:05:34unable to find a rickshaw that would go to her area of the city.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38They were picked up on the side of the road by a private bus.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57On board the moving bus, they beat up Jyoti
0:05:57 > 0:06:01and her male companion before raping her repeatedly.
0:06:01 > 0:06:05Worst of all, they inserted a car jack inside her,
0:06:05 > 0:06:07rupturing her internal organs.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32Yeah, I was just going to say that. It's horrible, isn't it?
0:06:32 > 0:06:35Just thinking about it, what she must have gone through.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42THEY CHANT We want justice! We want justice!
0:06:43 > 0:06:45Outrage after Jyoti's horrific ordeal
0:06:45 > 0:06:48led to mass demonstrations across the country.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55Police struggled to contain the rage,
0:06:55 > 0:06:59as men and women filled the streets in protest, demanding greater
0:06:59 > 0:07:02safety for women and justice for the girl who'd been brutally raped.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11Ten days later, Jyoti died in hospital from her injuries.
0:07:13 > 0:07:17Five men and a teenage boy were arrested.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20They're currently on trial for her rape and murder.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23In such cases, conviction can mean the death penalty.
0:07:37 > 0:07:41Three months on from the rape, Radha is keen to know
0:07:41 > 0:07:44whether passions are still high about what's happened.
0:07:44 > 0:07:45I can hear something.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55Support your sister, support your daughter. Come and speak up.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01Every night, a small group of protesters hold a passionate
0:08:01 > 0:08:04candlelit vigil for the girl who's died.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10The main point of what they're saying is "hang the rapists".
0:08:10 > 0:08:12I totally agree with that.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16I think they should hang the rapists for what they've done.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18- DIRECTOR:- Why?
0:08:18 > 0:08:21Because of the sheer brutality of what that girl suffered.
0:08:21 > 0:08:26Hanging is the only justice that can be done for her.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28It really is.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46There's so much of this.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50Since the Delhi rape, reported cases of sexual violence
0:08:50 > 0:08:52have more than doubled.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56Every day these newspapers are full of stories about
0:08:56 > 0:08:59sexual violence and rape.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03Look. "Dalit girl gang-raped in car in Amritsar."
0:09:03 > 0:09:06"Acid attack on woman and maid."
0:09:08 > 0:09:11"Youths jailed for raping minor cousin."
0:09:12 > 0:09:15Half a dozen papers here and they're all just full of stories.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20Radha's discovering that stories about women's safety
0:09:20 > 0:09:23and sexual violence are now headline news.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27"Delhi reels under surge in major crimes."
0:09:27 > 0:09:35"Rapes, 145 in 2012. Now just over 350 cases this year."
0:09:35 > 0:09:39So far. We're only just three, four, months into the year.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56I wonder if they're the ones who are enforcing what's been written
0:09:56 > 0:09:59on this poster here?
0:09:59 > 0:10:01It's all very well having it written down,
0:10:01 > 0:10:05but do they follow through with it in practice? That's another matter.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09Radha wants to know what the daily reality is like for
0:10:09 > 0:10:11young women on Delhi's streets.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13- Hi. How are you?- I'm good.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17She's come to a popular market to meet another friend, Bhavana,
0:10:17 > 0:10:19who lives in the city.
0:10:25 > 0:10:26So crowded, Bhavana.
0:10:42 > 0:10:43So am I OK walking like this?
0:10:48 > 0:10:51- So, you have to protect your...? - Exactly.- Assets.
0:10:56 > 0:11:02In India, sexual harassment is often written off as being harmless fun.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06It's described, quaintly, as Eve teasing.
0:11:20 > 0:11:22Verbal sexual remarks.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32Where I come from, if a guy looks me up and down
0:11:32 > 0:11:34it will wash over my head.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37Not really, no.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49It's trying to figure out what is Eve teasing, you know?
0:11:49 > 0:11:53If someone just stares at you in admiration, admiring, I don't know,
0:11:53 > 0:11:59your asset, or saying, "She looks pretty," is there any harm in that?
0:11:59 > 0:12:01Really?
0:12:08 > 0:12:12Even though sexual harassment is often dismissed as harmless teasing,
0:12:12 > 0:12:16Radha's about to discover how easily it can spin out of control.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18And not just in the big cities.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23She's come to the state of Assam in the north east of India
0:12:23 > 0:12:25where, one evening last summer,
0:12:25 > 0:12:28a girl was subjected to a humiliating assault.
0:12:32 > 0:12:36Her ordeal was filmed and then shown on national news.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52- Hi, Mousumi. Nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you.
0:12:52 > 0:12:5623-year-old Mousumi wants to tell Radha what really happened.
0:13:20 > 0:13:24The incident was filmed by a passing cameraman from a local news channel.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28It soon went viral on the internet.
0:13:34 > 0:13:35Oh, my God!
0:14:29 > 0:14:32Even though she'd done nothing wrong,
0:14:32 > 0:14:35Mousumi is now seen as being a girl of low character.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59After her attack was shown on national television,
0:14:59 > 0:15:02public outrage forced the police to act.
0:15:03 > 0:15:0611 men were arrested and convicted of her assault.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11Now I understand how something as small as Eve teasing,
0:15:11 > 0:15:14as a guy checking you out, can go to this.
0:15:14 > 0:15:20She was stripped in public, you know. No-one helped her. No-one.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23And she blames herself, she feels ashamed.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25She feels that she's the one who's done...
0:15:25 > 0:15:27She's been made to feel that she's the guilty party.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30All she did was go to a club, a friend's birthday.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33A friend's birthday, and this is the price she's had to pay.
0:15:40 > 0:15:43Radha is shocked by what she's heard.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47But she's no stranger to sexual harassment herself.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51It's something that she's faced before on previous trips to India
0:15:51 > 0:15:55and memories of those incidents are now returning.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59One time after a night out, I was taking a taxi, and the taxi man
0:15:59 > 0:16:03invited himself to touch my lower leg,
0:16:03 > 0:16:07grab onto it and slowly move it upwards.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10I looked down at my leg and I thought,
0:16:10 > 0:16:13"Is he doing what I think he's doing?"
0:16:13 > 0:16:15And I was telling myself, "No, he's not."
0:16:15 > 0:16:18And the whole initial shock stops you from reacting.
0:16:21 > 0:16:25Radha managed to escape from the taxi shaken up but unharmed.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29But then six months ago, while in India for a wedding,
0:16:29 > 0:16:33she was out in a market in Delhi when she faced another incident.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37I was shopping for an outfit for a friend's wedding
0:16:37 > 0:16:39with my mum and my auntie.
0:16:39 > 0:16:41We had, like, a personal assistant
0:16:41 > 0:16:44to help show you what you look like and everything.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50And it's only when he sort of crouched down on his knees
0:16:50 > 0:16:55towards the bottom of the dress to fix the flares and things
0:16:55 > 0:16:59that I felt, oh, something is touching my ankle
0:16:59 > 0:17:01from underneath the skirt,
0:17:01 > 0:17:06and I could feel his hand just slowly moving up my leg.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10And I kind of jolted and flinched and moved backwards and thought, "No."
0:17:10 > 0:17:14It was a clear, like, "I'm not comfortable with this."
0:17:14 > 0:17:18And that's when my auntie was like, right, OK, he's gone a step too far.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24I was just in shock and just wanted to get the hell out of there,
0:17:24 > 0:17:27to be honest. My auntie demanded to see the manager.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31They just didn't seem to be bothered. They didn't really care.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35I was furious. Really, really was furious.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37You feel disgusting,
0:17:37 > 0:17:40you feel tainted, like someone's just infected you.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42That's how you feel. Deep down.
0:17:45 > 0:17:47It's still here with me today, it still haunts me.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51I can't think about it but it's still there at the back of my mind,
0:17:51 > 0:17:54that I've been through these two experiences.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07Looks like a pretty rundown area to me.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10Amid all the outrage about the sexual harassment and violence
0:18:10 > 0:18:15suffered by Delhi's women, some lone voices have spoken up for men.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18INDISTINCT SPEECH
0:18:18 > 0:18:20Thank you. Nice to meet you.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24One of those is the man originally hired as
0:18:24 > 0:18:27the defence lawyer for three of the accused.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36Such was the brutality of the Delhi bus gang-rape
0:18:36 > 0:18:39that no well-known lawyer agreed to take on the case.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50- Can I have a look?- Yes.
0:18:50 > 0:18:55Lawyer Manohar Lal Sharma runs his business from his humble apartment.
0:19:01 > 0:19:02After the girl was raped,
0:19:02 > 0:19:05she and her male friend were thrown from the bus,
0:19:05 > 0:19:08and the attackers then attempted to run them over.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22What's this?
0:19:28 > 0:19:30I've heard some comments that you've made.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33You said that you've never heard of a respectable girl ever being raped.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41What's the difference between a respectable girl
0:19:41 > 0:19:42and a non-respectable girl?
0:20:09 > 0:20:13So do you think she had any responsibility -
0:20:13 > 0:20:15the fact that she was out at night with a boy?
0:20:41 > 0:20:42I am really shocked.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45What he is saying is that, if I go out tonight, after dark,
0:20:45 > 0:20:49with a guy who's not my husband, I'm not a respectable girl.
0:20:49 > 0:20:51And if something DOES happen to me, and I do get raped,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54that's partly my fault. My responsibility.
0:20:57 > 0:21:02It's opened my eyes, you know. I didn't realise actually how different
0:21:02 > 0:21:06life is here and how much society is different, culture is different.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09We're conditioned differently.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11Things that I take for granted...
0:21:11 > 0:21:15in India mean a completely different thing.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18The question of respect, the question of the way a girl dresses,
0:21:18 > 0:21:22the way you are judged, how you are perceived.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28These are things that I don't really give two thoughts about back home,
0:21:28 > 0:21:30but here, you DO have to think about.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43In India, there's another form of sexual violence
0:21:43 > 0:21:47which is not often reported. It's known as an acid attack.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55Radha's come to a rundown part of the city to meet Alok Dixit
0:21:55 > 0:21:59who works to raise awareness about such attacks on women.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03He's going to take Radha to meet a teenage survivor.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07Alok. Hi. I'm Radha, nice to meet you.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Can you tell me a little about the girl we are going to meet now?
0:22:21 > 0:22:24The girl Radha is about to meet was only 14
0:22:24 > 0:22:27when she was attacked last year.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30She's come to Delhi with her parents for treatment.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54I've never met anyone who suffered from an acid attack,
0:22:54 > 0:22:59so I'm just a bit nervous about what I'm going to see and...you know.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03I hope I don't frighten her with my expressions, you know.
0:25:00 > 0:25:01(Sorry.)
0:25:15 > 0:25:20After the attack, Tuba got emergency treatment at her local hospital.
0:25:20 > 0:25:24Since then, her parents have been seeking specialist help in Delhi.
0:25:24 > 0:25:29But it's costly treatment, and money that the family don't have.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04Four men were arrested after the attack
0:26:04 > 0:26:06and are now in jail, awaiting trial.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29Since the Delhi rape case,
0:26:29 > 0:26:32the penalty for such crimes has been increased to ten years.
0:26:32 > 0:26:36But, in reality, these cases can drag on for years in the courts -
0:26:36 > 0:26:39and, if convicted, the attackers often end up
0:26:39 > 0:26:41with much shorter sentences.
0:27:05 > 0:27:09She's 15 years old but, you know, I just keep trying to tell myself,
0:27:09 > 0:27:13all right, they've taken her face but, you know,
0:27:13 > 0:27:15they haven't taken her heart.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24They haven't taken her soul, they haven't taken her...
0:27:31 > 0:27:33Radha's struggling to understand
0:27:33 > 0:27:36what's underpinning all this violence.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40Why is it that such brutality is happening
0:27:40 > 0:27:42against young women in India?
0:27:47 > 0:27:52Radha's come to the Delhi headquarters of UN Women.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55She's here to meet Sabrina Sidhu
0:27:55 > 0:27:58who's part of a team researching sexual violence in India.
0:27:58 > 0:28:02We did a study in Delhi and the study showed that 95%
0:28:02 > 0:28:05of women are scared to go out.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08Our studies also showed that two in three men that were
0:28:08 > 0:28:13interviewed felt that the dress women wore provoked them.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15Where did this all come from, you know,
0:28:15 > 0:28:17where do all these attitudes come from?
0:28:17 > 0:28:21Men want to be in control, they want to be in power, right?
0:28:21 > 0:28:24In your families, when boys grow up into men,
0:28:24 > 0:28:28they really see how the mother and sisters are treated -
0:28:28 > 0:28:34what value is put on their education, on their mobility etc.
0:28:34 > 0:28:38And then they go do exactly that with their wives or daughters.
0:28:38 > 0:28:40And then, through their life cycle,
0:28:40 > 0:28:44they're being discriminated at every stage.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47Until these mind-sets change, you know,
0:28:47 > 0:28:51rapes, molestation, harassment will continue to happen.
0:28:51 > 0:28:53What's really clear and urgent is that
0:28:53 > 0:28:57we need to value women in this country, equally.
0:28:58 > 0:29:01It's sobering for Radha to hear that what's underpinning
0:29:01 > 0:29:05the violence is that women are often seen as inferior to men.
0:29:14 > 0:29:17Disturbed by what she's heard, Radha wants to find out
0:29:17 > 0:29:21what life is like for women outside the big cities.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27She's decided to make the long journey back to her
0:29:27 > 0:29:30home state of Punjab to meet her own relatives.
0:29:33 > 0:29:37It's a six-hour trip on India's heaving rail network.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44It's time to rough it. Ditch the straighteners and the hairdryer.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49She's going to the village where her mother spent
0:29:49 > 0:29:51the first few years of her life.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55I really do feel like I'm a million miles away from home.
0:29:55 > 0:29:57So different.
0:30:02 > 0:30:03I'm so nervous.
0:30:07 > 0:30:11- Hello-ji.- Hello-ji. Namaste-ji.
0:30:11 > 0:30:16Radha has twin cousins her age, who she's not met for a decade.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18The guy is known as Bunty.
0:30:20 > 0:30:22And the girl is Sheetal.
0:30:23 > 0:30:26Bunty got married a few months ago.
0:30:26 > 0:30:28His new wife has moved in with her in-laws.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32My wife - Monu.
0:30:32 > 0:30:33Monu? OK.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36Like most Indian weddings, it was an arranged marriage.
0:30:36 > 0:30:40Even though it was a happy occasion, Radha's keen to find out what
0:30:40 > 0:30:43married life is like for the new bride.
0:31:41 > 0:31:42This is my room.
0:31:42 > 0:31:45For Bunty, like most Indian grooms,
0:31:45 > 0:31:48the wedding meant a bonanza of gifts from the girl's family.
0:31:49 > 0:31:50It's what's known as dowry.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25In Bunty's case, the gifts were freely given.
0:32:25 > 0:32:29But, all too often, the girl's family are forced to give more than
0:32:29 > 0:32:31they can afford.
0:32:32 > 0:32:33It's the price for having a girl.
0:33:07 > 0:33:10The village is wealthy, with lots of money
0:33:10 > 0:33:13coming in from relatives who've settled abroad.
0:33:15 > 0:33:19Today Radha's going with her cousins to visit one family
0:33:19 > 0:33:21who are celebrating the birth of a son.
0:33:21 > 0:33:23Oh, my God.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27LIVELY MUSIC PLAYS
0:33:43 > 0:33:47The parents of the newborn boy live in the UK.
0:33:47 > 0:33:50His relatives in the village are celebrating the birth
0:33:50 > 0:33:53in the traditional way, with the help of a transsexual -
0:33:53 > 0:33:55what's known in India as a eunuch -
0:33:55 > 0:33:58who collects donations from well-wishers.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23THEY ALL LAUGH
0:34:34 > 0:34:39Even in Radha's own family, these traditions hold firm.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43Her cousin Sheetal has two children,
0:34:43 > 0:34:46a three-year-old son and a six-year-old daughter.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03Poor little Lisa didn't get it.
0:35:47 > 0:35:52I'm just struggling to understand why it's such a burden to be a girl.
0:35:59 > 0:36:03I'm really struggling. I just, I can't understand it.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06It's not...it's not sinking in to my head.
0:36:12 > 0:36:16I think it's a bit of a reality check and wake-up call.
0:36:16 > 0:36:21The sad reality is that being a girl in India is just a huge burden.
0:36:21 > 0:36:25Even to the extent that people don't want girls.
0:36:27 > 0:36:29HORN BEEPS
0:36:33 > 0:36:36To see for herself the reality of what it means to be unwanted,
0:36:36 > 0:36:40Radha is visiting an orphanage in the nearby city of Patiala.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48She's here to meet Veena Bakshi,
0:36:48 > 0:36:51who looks after more than 30 abandoned or orphaned girls.
0:36:51 > 0:36:55It's one of hundreds of such places across India.
0:36:56 > 0:37:00Girls often are taken in as babies or young infants,
0:37:00 > 0:37:02and stay here until marriage.
0:38:02 > 0:38:04MUSIC PLAYS
0:38:04 > 0:38:09At this home, the girls grow up in one huge female family.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12It means the younger ones get started early
0:38:12 > 0:38:15on learning their Bollywood dance moves.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26With so many sisters, they're getting the love
0:38:26 > 0:38:28and affection their families wouldn't give them.
0:38:30 > 0:38:32RADHA: Bye-bye.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36Bye.
0:38:36 > 0:38:37GIRLS: Bye!
0:38:47 > 0:38:50I'm not a mother. I don't know what it's like to have a kid
0:38:50 > 0:38:52but surely, you know, what sort of individual,
0:38:52 > 0:38:56what sort of human are you to actually physically be able
0:38:56 > 0:39:00to put your child, something that's part of you, in danger,
0:39:00 > 0:39:01give it up, abandon it?
0:39:01 > 0:39:04A child is a gift. And all these girls,
0:39:04 > 0:39:07all their mothers have abandoned them.
0:39:14 > 0:39:17Radha is shocked by all that she's discovered about
0:39:17 > 0:39:20what it means to be a woman in India.
0:39:20 > 0:39:24Back in Delhi, she's determined to take a stand, in a personal way.
0:39:26 > 0:39:29She's decided to go to the police,
0:39:29 > 0:39:32to report the harassment she suffered herself last year.
0:39:32 > 0:39:35- Where's the police station? - Straight down the road.
0:39:35 > 0:39:39She's asked her friend Bhavana to come with her for moral support.
0:39:42 > 0:39:45Even though the incident happened several months ago,
0:39:45 > 0:39:47Radha has found out that under Indian law
0:39:47 > 0:39:51she has one year to report any case of sexual harassment.
0:39:52 > 0:39:54Six months ago, when the incident happened, you know,
0:39:54 > 0:39:57I wasn't strong enough, I didn't want to deal with it.
0:39:57 > 0:39:59I just wanted to forget about it, you know.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01When you go through something bad, you just, you freeze,
0:40:01 > 0:40:05you're in shock, you don't want to... You just want to block it out
0:40:05 > 0:40:07completely but now that I'm back here in India six months on,
0:40:07 > 0:40:11you know, just feet away from the shop, I do feel a sense of,
0:40:11 > 0:40:14"Well, hold on, you know, you've got the courage, Radha.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16"You can do this, you can go to the police."
0:40:16 > 0:40:19And I want to see if the police will take my case seriously.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25Radha is going to try to register her complaint at the nearby
0:40:25 > 0:40:29police station as a member of the public, not as part of a BBC team.
0:40:31 > 0:40:34The cameras are being left far behind.
0:40:44 > 0:40:49Two hours later, Radha and Bhavana are out of the police station.
0:40:49 > 0:40:51I expected nothing, to be honest.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53My expectation was that they're not going to do anything.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56I thought, OK, they'll make me write something down on paper
0:40:56 > 0:40:59and then send me away. I honestly thought that I wasn't going to
0:40:59 > 0:41:01be in there for the length of time I was.
0:41:01 > 0:41:07But they physically dropped all their work, had me go to the shop,
0:41:07 > 0:41:10escorted by three police officers, made an effort to speak
0:41:10 > 0:41:14and find out from the shop itself what happened and who did it.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17They've at least taken the step to, you know, ask you what's happened.
0:41:17 > 0:41:21And they actually went with us. I mean, for me, it came as a shock.
0:41:21 > 0:41:25Do you think it's because I'm a foreigner, they made an effort?
0:41:25 > 0:41:27I am presuming yes.
0:41:29 > 0:41:32PHONE RINGS Policeman calling. Hello.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36Hi. Hello.
0:41:37 > 0:41:39Anji?
0:41:42 > 0:41:45Yeah, I would like to register the complaint.
0:41:45 > 0:41:47You want me to come back?
0:41:47 > 0:41:49OK. Bye. Bye.
0:41:52 > 0:41:54That was shocking. I've just had a call from the policeman
0:41:54 > 0:41:57and he wants me to come back to register the case.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00He's insisting. So I think I'm going to go back.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11Three hours later, and the police have been swift to act.
0:42:12 > 0:42:16They've put pressure on the management of the shop
0:42:16 > 0:42:19to identify the suspect and have now made an arrest.
0:42:20 > 0:42:22I'm just gobsmacked.
0:42:22 > 0:42:26I went to write a statement and, before I know it,
0:42:26 > 0:42:29the culprit is there.
0:42:29 > 0:42:33The police said, "Is this the man that groped you?"
0:42:33 > 0:42:35And...
0:42:37 > 0:42:38And I said, "Yeah."
0:42:41 > 0:42:43And now a case has been opened.
0:42:44 > 0:42:47- DIRECTOR:- So are you pleased?
0:42:47 > 0:42:50Yeah. Bit scared, though.
0:42:50 > 0:42:51Of what?
0:42:51 > 0:42:56When you come face-to-face with someone who's done something to you.
0:42:56 > 0:42:59It's good what's happened, but...
0:43:06 > 0:43:07I know his name.
0:43:09 > 0:43:12They've taken statements, a full case has been opened.
0:43:12 > 0:43:14And he's going to be put in jail tonight.
0:43:14 > 0:43:17He was begging at my feet for forgiveness
0:43:17 > 0:43:20and I just felt really uncomfortable.
0:43:20 > 0:43:23He's from a village, he's got an old mum and dad.
0:43:23 > 0:43:25He's supposedly got a wife.
0:43:25 > 0:43:27The police slapped him, saying, "Well, if you've got a wife
0:43:27 > 0:43:31"and you've got a sister, how dare you touch her?
0:43:31 > 0:43:32"What gave you the right?"
0:43:32 > 0:43:35And he was begging me. I couldn't even look at him.
0:43:42 > 0:43:45Despite her fears about what's to happen next,
0:43:45 > 0:43:48Radha's accusation is being taken seriously.
0:43:49 > 0:43:53Since the Delhi rape case, there's been overwhelming public
0:43:53 > 0:43:57pressure for a change in attitudes to violence against women.
0:43:57 > 0:43:59And change has begun to happen.
0:44:07 > 0:44:10Thousands of Delhi police officers are being trained to be more
0:44:10 > 0:44:14sensitive to cases of harassment and sexual violence.
0:44:21 > 0:44:24There's a new dedicated women-in-distress helpline.
0:44:26 > 0:44:29And tougher penalties for crimes against women.
0:44:35 > 0:44:38And these cases are now being fast-tracked through
0:44:38 > 0:44:40special women's courts.
0:44:44 > 0:44:48One of these is where Radha is now going.
0:44:48 > 0:44:52Only three days after she went to the police,
0:44:52 > 0:44:55her case is already being heard.
0:44:55 > 0:44:58It's judgment day today and I feel a bit sick.
0:44:58 > 0:45:01I've never been to a court in my life. I've never...
0:45:03 > 0:45:07It's just really strange, I feel quite lonely right now.
0:45:07 > 0:45:08I don't know.
0:45:09 > 0:45:14I've got an opportunity to give myself a bit of peace of mind
0:45:14 > 0:45:18and put things right and make that man pay for what he's done.
0:45:18 > 0:45:22Do you think in the current climate they might want to give him
0:45:22 > 0:45:25a much tougher sentence to show that they mean business
0:45:25 > 0:45:27and they're serious about these issues?
0:45:27 > 0:45:30Well, if that's what it's going to take, then... It's not up to me
0:45:30 > 0:45:33to decide, but if that's what it's going to take.
0:45:33 > 0:45:36You know, I don't know what's appropriate for this.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39But it's hard to judge what's a stiffer sentence.
0:45:41 > 0:45:44How do you teach someone a lesson and what is the appropriate
0:45:44 > 0:45:47time frame - a day, two days, a month, couple of years?
0:45:51 > 0:45:55In the Indian justice system, there's no jury.
0:45:55 > 0:45:57A judge sitting alone will hear Radha's case.
0:46:01 > 0:46:04An hour later, and the initial hearing is over.
0:46:05 > 0:46:07The female judge asked me my story.
0:46:07 > 0:46:10I told her in English what had happened.
0:46:10 > 0:46:13She then said to the defendant, "Don't you have any shame?
0:46:13 > 0:46:15"What the hell did you think you were doing?"
0:46:15 > 0:46:18By her facial expressions, she said, you know,
0:46:18 > 0:46:21it's going to be a severe punishment. Like that.
0:46:23 > 0:46:26The man admitted touching Radha's leg
0:46:26 > 0:46:29while adjusting the flares on the skirt she was trying on.
0:46:29 > 0:46:32But denied it was in any way sexual.
0:46:34 > 0:46:37The judge has yet to make a decision on his guilt
0:46:37 > 0:46:39and what sentence he might face.
0:46:43 > 0:46:47It feels horrible to know that here's me getting...
0:46:47 > 0:46:51experiencing the full force of justice system.
0:46:51 > 0:46:54But then there's other girls with much more serious crimes
0:46:54 > 0:46:59who haven't come anywhere near close to what I've experienced at all.
0:46:59 > 0:47:01One half of me feels guilty.
0:47:01 > 0:47:04The other half of me feels that I am very fortunate.
0:47:04 > 0:47:06Is it cos I'm a foreigner?
0:47:06 > 0:47:09Is it because mine's an easy case to solve?
0:47:09 > 0:47:10Convenient case to solve?
0:47:18 > 0:47:20Radha's about to make one last discovery
0:47:20 > 0:47:22about the mistreatment of women -
0:47:22 > 0:47:26that it runs through all levels of society.
0:47:26 > 0:47:29She's come to an upmarket area of Delhi to meet a doctor
0:47:29 > 0:47:32who's taking her own in-laws to court.
0:47:32 > 0:47:36- Hi, Mitu. I'm Radha. - Hello. Nice to meet you.
0:47:36 > 0:47:40Dr Mitu Khurana is the mother of twin girls.
0:47:40 > 0:47:44- What's her name?- Her name is Gudo. - Hello!
0:47:44 > 0:47:48She claims that her in-laws put huge pressure on her to abort them
0:47:48 > 0:47:51simply because of their sex.
0:47:51 > 0:47:56All this despite the fact that her in-laws were university professors
0:47:56 > 0:47:58and her husband an orthopaedic surgeon.
0:48:09 > 0:48:11So, dowry, what does that mean?
0:48:18 > 0:48:21Then they discovered you were pregnant with twin girls?
0:48:36 > 0:48:37Nothing to eat?
0:48:57 > 0:48:58They said that to you?
0:49:09 > 0:49:13Dr Khurana believes the problem of sex selection is getting
0:49:13 > 0:49:16out of control in some of the wealthiest parts of the city.
0:49:22 > 0:49:25She says ultrasound scans are being used to detect girls
0:49:25 > 0:49:28and then abort them.
0:49:28 > 0:49:31But abortion on the basis of sex is illegal in India.
0:49:52 > 0:49:56Is this normal in a class of your background?
0:50:21 > 0:50:23But it's illegal...?
0:50:36 > 0:50:40Dr Khurana is now taking her husband and in-laws to court
0:50:40 > 0:50:42for forcing her to be scanned.
0:50:42 > 0:50:46He denies this and the other allegations made by his wife.
0:50:48 > 0:50:52Dr Khurana is one of the few women of her class prepared to speak out.
0:50:52 > 0:50:54What is this?
0:51:02 > 0:51:03How determined are you?
0:51:16 > 0:51:18There you go.
0:51:18 > 0:51:20"All the best, Mitu. With you 100% - keep fighting.
0:51:20 > 0:51:23"You will get justice for you and your girls
0:51:23 > 0:51:25"and all other females in India. Radha."
0:51:25 > 0:51:26Thanks.
0:51:31 > 0:51:34You have to admire her determination.
0:51:34 > 0:51:40Here is a mother who's been to hell and back to save her twin girls.
0:51:40 > 0:51:43She's fighting the system, she's fighting society,
0:51:43 > 0:51:45she's fighting the mindset.
0:51:45 > 0:51:47She's fighting the patriarchal system.
0:51:47 > 0:51:49You know, all for her daughters.
0:51:49 > 0:51:52This mother is giving everything - to me, she's like a superwoman!
0:52:04 > 0:52:08Radha's almost come to the end of her time in India.
0:52:10 > 0:52:13Before she leaves, she has one more person to meet -
0:52:13 > 0:52:16the father of the girl whose brutal rape on board the Delhi bus
0:52:16 > 0:52:19had triggered the mass outrage.
0:52:20 > 0:52:23After their arrest, one of the accused committed suicide.
0:52:23 > 0:52:27Five others were convicted of her rape and murder.
0:52:27 > 0:52:30Four of them have been sentenced to death.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36This is where Jyoti lived with her family.
0:54:15 > 0:54:18When I was talking to him, I was thinking to myself,
0:54:18 > 0:54:23"What do I say to him? How can you say anything to him?"
0:54:26 > 0:54:28I think about all the things I've done in my life,
0:54:28 > 0:54:31I think this is probably got to be one of the most difficult things
0:54:31 > 0:54:33I've ever had to do.
0:54:50 > 0:54:54I'm glad to be going back, to be honest.
0:54:54 > 0:54:59It's been a bit of a tough ride. Witnessed so many things,
0:54:59 > 0:55:03been through so much myself that it's just, um...
0:55:03 > 0:55:06In a way, I'm sad to be going back
0:55:06 > 0:55:09but in another way, I'm glad, actually.
0:55:10 > 0:55:11It's time to go home.
0:55:24 > 0:55:29Hi, pussycat. Welcome home. Come on in! Come on in.
0:55:29 > 0:55:31I'm knackered!
0:55:33 > 0:55:36He hasn't got fat. I'm pleased about that.
0:55:46 > 0:55:48It's just been really overwhelming.
0:55:48 > 0:55:53I did not prepare myself at all for what I'd be witnessing,
0:55:53 > 0:55:56seeing and hearing.
0:55:56 > 0:56:00And it's really hit home that I've never once ever felt
0:56:00 > 0:56:04lesser compared to my brother, as a girl, as a female.
0:56:04 > 0:56:05I've never, ever felt that.
0:56:05 > 0:56:08The girls that I met in India, they all want the same,
0:56:08 > 0:56:11they want freedom, they want to have a choice,
0:56:11 > 0:56:14they want to be an individual. They want what I have.
0:56:14 > 0:56:18That's been the hardest thing is to come to terms with that.
0:56:18 > 0:56:22The single most biggest thing that I've realised
0:56:22 > 0:56:25and come away with is just how fortunate I am.