“Rahaul”, not his real name, was born in a Mumbai brothel to a fifth generation temple prostitute and grew up to become a gangster. A reformed man, Rahaul was my fixer for years, as I went to undercover the horrors of sexual exploitation in the red light district. I learned quickly that Mumbai’s then sprawling red light district was a place of pain not of pleasure.

Since my early 20’s I have been traveling to India, a country of extraordinary beauty, as a photojournalist, where I also documented poverty and injustice. I spent 11 years on and off going in often embedded with “Rahaul” as my fixer gathering pieces of the story, and reporting undercover in order to tell the story of the brutal reality of sex slavery and trafficking in India.

“Rahaul” opened the secrets of the red light to me. He was my fixer, my translator, my guide, my bodyguard and teacher of the realities of how a red light district operates. More than that, he has become a dear friend and brother.

Please be aware today’s Beyond The Story conversation includes content that some listeners may find upsetting - with references to modern slavery, trafficking, and sexual violence.

Rahaul's story is in two parts. This is part one.

Taken eBook- Hazel Thompson is donating 100% of profits to charity Jubilee Campaign to rescue women and children out of Mumbai's red-light district: https://books.apple.com/gb/book/taken/id715654976

Taken Campaign in partnership with charity Jubilee Campaign: https://www.jubileecampaign.co.uk/stories/taken

Hazel Thompson chats to Beyond The Story Executive Producer Nancy Fraser about the heart behind Beyond the Story podcast, why she made the series, and how she hopes listeners respond.

Follow Hazel Thompson:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hazelthompsonphoto/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HazelThompsonPhotojournalist

Website: https://hazelthompson.com

With echoes of the displacement of millions of innocents from Ukraine, Iliriana Gashi, a trained medical doctor, fled as a refugee and survived a bloody war in Kosovo. Using that experience, she now supports the marginalised women in Kosovo, as Executive Director of Kosovo Women 4 Women http://www.k-w4w.org/en/ that has served more than 35,000 women since 1999. Coming from her own trauma of displacement and loss through war Iliriana works with women on social and economic empowerment equipping women to flourish as businesswomen, but also the skills necessary to take care of themselves and each other through psychological and social support as they reintegrate into society.

Before joining Women for Women International, Dr. Gashi worked for the Canadian Agency for International Development, World Vision, the French Embassy in Kosovo, the World Bank and the American International Health Alliance (AIHA) in different positions and responsibilities. She was also a member of the Policy and Planning Committee at the Kosovo Ministry of Health.

Dr. Gashi is a medical doctor with a Master’s degree in Health Care Management from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland. She serves on the Boards of two organizations: the Network of Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian Women's Organizations of Kosovo, and the CiviKos Platform and she is a member of the International Soroptimist Club in Pristina.

You can see more of Iliriana's work on social media -

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KosovaWomen4Women
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womenforwomenkosova/

Share a hug necklace with profits going back to Kosova Women 4 Women

https://www.poshtottydesigns.com/jewellery/shop-by-collection/share-a-hug-collection.html

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