While many young lovers painted the town in red on the eve of Valentines Day, a group of women against the violence meted out to women. It was all about reclaiming the space that was always theirs but was slowly being taken away by men - women clearly celebrated their identity in Bangalore on Valentine's Day.
With a firm 'Enough is Enough' slogan in place, the 'One Billion Rising in Karnataka saw women from all walks of life, and quite a few men, come together to re-define love and re-affirm relationships in society, especially on a day which celebrates love.
Primarily a reaction to the brutal gang rape of the 23-year-old in Delhi, colourful folk dances, songs, paintings, story-telling and poetry recitation marked the day at Cubbon Park.
The One billion rising saw women not just in Bangalore but across India participating and showing the cause of womenhood.
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On Thursday, the Mumbai chapter of One Billion Rising, a global campaign to raise awareness about gender-based violence across 200 countries, concluded with more than 1,000 citizens coming together to take a pledge to respect women.
At the main event in an amphitheatre near Bandra bandstand, the issue was raised through dance performances, short films and rap songs.
Several non-profit organisations including Stree Mukti Sangathana, Society for Nutrition, Education and Health Action (Sneha), and Kranti were part of the initiative.
Renowned actor-director Farhan Akhtar put up a show for the audience at the amphitheatre, and actors such as Rahul Bose, Kalki too interacted with the audience.
One Billion Rising in Guwahati
North-eastern states also joined the initiative of One Billion Rising. In Guwahati, different NGOs and women organizations pushed forward the issue of abuse and crime against women. People gathered here responded positively to the event that tried to create awareness on crime against women.
The city, along with the rest of the world, took part in the One Billion Rising launched by V-Day, a global activist movement to end violence against women, on Thursday at Shrddhanjali Kanan.
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