Stealing her identity with a Chhappaak

“She said no to my love”

“She rejected my marriage proposal”

“She still hasn’t given the entire dowry”

“She wanted to go abroad to study”

“She loved someone of another religion”

All these sentences mostly end with “She had to be shown her place”. 

A young girl with so much ahead of her: building a career, making her parents proud, settling peacefully, and enjoying life. Countless moments of happiness, endless memories—life is waiting for her. But then some cruel hands come with that damaging bottle in hand and that one Chhapaak (splash) changes her life entirely. A twenty rupees bottle stealing away twenty years of her life.

Vitriolism, or in simple terms, “acid attack” can change someone’s life forever. This is gender-based violence, leaving a trail of devastation far beyond the physical scars. It’s an expression of control over the bodies of women and girls, aimed at silencing and controlling them. Intending to cause shame and lifelong pain, these attacks often occur as revenge against women. Gender inequality and women's position in society, in relation to men, plays a significant role in these types of attacks. 

Chhappaak starring Deepika Padukone, is the real-life story of Laxmi Agarwal. Malti (name in the movie) was 15 years old when she became the victim of a brutal act of revenge in Delhi in 2005. She met with this fate after refusing a marriage proposal from a family friend who became obsessed with her. Rushed to the hospital after several accidents, her skin was entirely burned. It took seven operations and seven years to undo the damage of a bruised ego. However, the journey wasn’t that easy. The physical pain, along with societal judgement paved a path with suffering in every step.

But change was afoot for Malti, who refused to be enslaved by the injustice meted out to her. With the support of her parents and her lawyer, she set out and completed her studies and started tailoring. However, the struggles didn’t end there. In 2005, acid attacks and burning someone with hot water came under the same section of the Indian Penal Code. So the punishment would be the same. Even though the perpetrators were found guilty, they were easily able to make bail and continue life normally.

Malti was in desperate need of a job. She joined an NGO that helps acid attack survivors just for the salary. But after meeting them and knowing the reasons behind their attacks, she decided to raise awareness and fight against it. Alongside her case, she also filed a PIL suit to ban the sale of acid in India

“When I met more survivors like me, I became angry. Several others were suffering. Few didn’t even have parental support; they needed money and job opportunities. Society had shunned them instead of the perpetrators. And I thought that this was enough! We can’t keep quiet anymore.”  -Laxmi Agarwal

Laxmi Agarwal established the Chhanv Foundation in 2014 to assist acid attack survivors with rehabilitation, medical and legal aid. As a victim of societal judgement herself, she faced limits and obstacles to her employment opportunities. She also opened “Sheroes Hangout”, a cafe run by acid attack survivors. This is not only a safe space for said victims but also offers them employment opportunities. 

Laxmi Agarwal, who survived an acid attack, is now a source of inspiration and empowerment for women across all ages and demographics. She has gained sympathy from her audience and made a name for herself as a human rights advocate standing up for those injured by acid attacks. She has won numerous awards and gained recognition on a global scale for her activism. She has shown unwavering courage through her tenacity and perseverance, defying expectations by challenging society's standards of beauty.

“I tell my story to give hope to the parents and victims of survivors. Through my story, I want to tell all the women to support one another, become our strength, and help fight this menace of violence against women. This can happen to anyone and we can stop it when we fight together, and educate the children about respecting women.” - Laxmi Agarwal

In the movie, the perpetrators were sentenced to ten years of imprisonment and she eventually succeeded in having the penal code amended. However, this happiness was short-lived. Around the same time, there was another acid attack which claimed the life of a young girl. The movie ends with this attack and laments that despite the new regulations and media exposure, the frequency of acid attacks has not decreased, as acid is still bought and sold freely in India.

The story of Laxmi is our reality. This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. On one side it’s the brutal way of harming someone, and on the other side, it’s the way women are viewed. The perspective of women always being lower than men, the thought that “they have to be shown their place” has to be stopped. Acid attacks are one of the ways women are punished. There are so many other ways that go unnoticed. 

Though Laxmi got attacked at a very young age, she didn’t lose courage and or give up on life. She stood firm and fought all battles and emerged victorious. From a point where she thought there was no hope in life, she even went so far as to support a great number of other people who had survived acid attacks. She didn’t let that chhappaak steal her identity.

~ Inspired by the movie Chhappaak (2020)