Prostitution in Kolkata

Last updated

Prostitution in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) is present in different forms and Kolkata's sex industry is one of the largest in Asia. [1] [2] [3] Prostitution may be brothel-based or non-brothel based as in the case of call girls. India is regarded as having one of the largest commercial sex trades globally. [4] Kolkata has many red-light districts, out of which Sonagachi is the largest red-light district in Asia with more than 50,000 commercial sex workers. [5] [6] [7]

Contents

Prostitute population

The total number of prostitutes in Kolkata is unknown. Some estimates state that there are more than 60,000 brothel-based women and girls in prostitution in Kolkata. [8] [9] [10]

The population of prostitutes in Sonagachi constitutes mainly of Nepalese, Bangladeshi and Indian women trafficked from north eastern and neighboring states, many who are trafficked into the area by their boyfriends or family. [9] Some sources estimate that are 30,000 Bangladeshi women in the brothels of Kolkata. [11]

According to some sources the most common form of trafficking consists in offering false promises or some offer of help out of a dead-end or crisis situation, force is used later after the prostitutes have already been sold. "Mashis (brothel owners/older sex workers) use friendship, sympathy, also veiled threats to convince the women that it is now in their best interest to conform and begin working." [8] The Crime Branch of Delhi Police has recovered one girl from Rabindra Sarani, Sonagachi who was missing along with eight other female inmates from Sanskar Ashram in Dilshad Garden since December 2, 2018. Eight out of these nine girls were originally from Nepal, while the ninth girl was from Bhagalpur, Bihar. These girls had been rescued from a brothel in G.B. Road," police said. [12]

History of Prostitution

A farcical short-drama book named Beshyaleela ( বেশ্যালীলা ) was printed in the middle of the year 1880 written by an anonymous writer ( অজ্ঞাতনামা ). It is not very familiar or much discussed book till now. In this drama, a good description can be found about the negative attitudes shown by the then existing 19th century educated Bengali Babu class of people towards the prostitutes and the prostitution. From the first half of the 19th century, centering on Sonagachhi, a huge organised prostitution area surrounding Cornwallis Street on the east, and Chitpur on the west were formed. Although many areas in Calcutta were inhabited by those prostitutes outside those areas also. On the south it was Kalighat to Khidirpur dock areas, in the middle-Calcutta it was Kalinga-Fenwick Bazar, on the far south in Kareya area many girls from different social-classes of Hindu-Muslim-Christian communities were engaged with this profession. More than that, there was no clear 'mark' or 'boundary-line' between the 'gentleman areas' and the 'prostitutes areas'. Many areas had scattered or mixed up population of those two kinds. Rather, many areas could be termed as 'half-gentleman' areas, where normal gentleman's families and various types of prostitutes co-existed side by side. From the middle of the 19th century, the British colonial administration, Christian Missionaries, and native English-knowing educated 'Victorian' Indian gentlemen started campaign against prostitutes. This was their part of the project of social 'sanitation' process for creating the so-called 'gentle-society'. Under the leadership of Mr. Kaliprasanna Singha, the 'Vidyotsahini Sabha' ( বিদ্যোৎসাহিনী সভা ) submitted one mass-petition in the Indian Legislative Council.

Red-light districts

Sonagachi jon gresham 1.jpg
Sonagachi jon gresham 2.jpg
A scene in Sonagachi, Kolkata's red light district, 2005.

Bowbazar

Bowbazar has a red-light district where about 15,000 prostitutes work. [13] The surrounding areas are inhabited by slum dwellers, truckers and migrant labourers. The adjacent Tiretta Bazar area is mainly a loading –unloading point with offices or godowns of a large number of transport companies. The area is very unsanitary. [14]

Garia

There is a small red-light district in Garia. [15] There were plans to build a home for retired sex workers in the area. [16]

Kalighat

In south Kolkata, there is a red light district in the neighbourhood of Kalighat. Located around the banks of the Adi Ganga canal, an estimated 1,000 to 1,500 prostitutes live and work there. [17] Kolkata has emerged as a hub for the trafficking of girls, who often arrive from Nepal, Bangladesh, Assam and Burma. From Kolkata they are often sold again to brothels in Mumbai (Bombay) or Chennai (Madras). Some will go on to the Middle East, Africa and Europe. [18] Many of the women in Sonnagachi were forcedly taken away from their homes; some were tricked and others sold into prostitution by their friends and families; most of them are illiterate. [19]

Kidderpore

The red-light district in Kidderpore is the third largest in Kolkata. [15] NGO Apne Aap has a support centre in the area and has made two films about life in Kidderpore's red-light district: Kali and Shaadi Ka Shart Shauchalaya. [20]

Lebu Bagan

There is a small, little known red-light district in north Kolkata called Lebu Bagan. About 100 prostitutes work there in four streets. [17]

Sonagachi

The largest red-light district in Kolkata, is Sonagachi, it is also the largest red-light district in India. [21] The area came to be known as Sona Gachi from a Sufi saint Sona Ghazi whose tomb (mazaar) is located in the locality. [22] It is an area with several hundred multi-storey brothels, and around 10,000 sex workers. [23] Sonagachi is located in North-Kolkata near the intersection of Chittaranjan Avenue Sova Bazar and Beadon Street, just north of the Marble Palace. The Prostitute Population mostly consists of woman's from poor regions of neighboring states and border regions. Previously there were many local prostitutes in Sonagachi. But now Rajasthani, Bihari, Odia and Khamia-Nepalese prostitutes have gained in number. According to class-division, the red-light areas of Kolkata are also divided into four different classes: poor-class, lower-class, middle-class, and rich-class. For example, The red-light area which once existed opposite to the diagonal angle of Khanna Cinema Hall was of 'poor-class'. When they contacted customers, they asked them "Khat-e na Chot-e" ? Which means, "Do you want to sleep in wooden cot or on jute-sheet spread over the floor?" As customers wished, the fee varied according to their choice. The lower-class and middle-class of prostitute areas were scattered around Haarkaata Gully and near Chetla/Kalighat bridge. Supreme court ordered police to treat sex worker of Sonagachi with dignity.

Several non-government organizations and government organizations operate here for the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases (STD) including AIDS. Sonagachi project is a prostitute's cooperative that operates in the area and empowers sex workers to insist on condom use; a relatively low percentage of prostitutes in this district (5.17% of the 13,000 prostitutes in Sonagachi) are estimated to be HIV positive. [24] However, these efforts are hindered by human trafficking: refusal of clients to wear condom, and women controlled by third parties are forced to oblige.

According to some sources, prostitutes from Sonagachi who test HIV positive are not told about the results, and live with the disease without knowing about it "because the DMSC is worried that HIV positive women will be ostracized." [25] Some prostitutes in Sonagachi have stated that "the clients, at least three quarters of them" refuse to use condoms and "If we force them to use the condom, they will just go next door. There are so many women working here, and in the end, everyone is prepared to work without protection for fear of losing trade." [25]

Tollygunge

Tollygunge is a small red-light district located near Prince Anwar Shah Road. [13]

Street prostitution

Street prostitutes work in Esplanade Crossing, [26] opposite of cinema ‘Metro’ and in the street between Elite Cinema Hall and Regal Cinema Hall, Jagat Cinema near Sealdah station and under Sealdah flyover, [26] and another place is Ultadanga flyover and railway foot over bridge, Kalighat [26] and Garia. [16] Also a very small level high class escort service operates here, mostly college student or housewives or executives. Generally they use hotels booked by client or the flat of their pimp.

Male prostitutes often pick up clients in the Maidan, particularly in front of the Victoria Memorial. [27]

Call girls

Call girls operate independently and through pimps or escort agencies. Prostitution is operated from many beauty parlours and massage parlors in the city. [28] [29] Pimps (commonly called agents) in nightclubs, pubs, star hotels and floorboys acting as agents generally keep catalogues with pictures of the call girls. [29] The girls operate in places like flats, hotels, etc. [30] Generally the call girls go to the rooms in star hotels. However, when the client cannot provide a place of convenience, the agents provide one and the place is generally decided on before. [29]

Call girls in Kolkata may come from middle class, upper middle class and upper-class families. They may be executives, housewives, college students or actresses. [29] [30]

The Kolkata Police have connections with many call girls working as their informers. Many criminals like to spend time with the girls. Hence some call girls are used by the police to get information about suspected criminals. [31]

Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee (DMSC), which runs the Sonagachi project and several similar projects in West Bengal, lobbies for the recognition of sex workers' rights and full legalization. [32] DMSC hosted India's first national convention of sex workers on 14 November 1997, in Kolkata, entitled 'Sex Work is Real Work: We Demand Workers Rights'. [33]

Born into Brothels , a 2004 American documentary film about the children of prostitutes in Sonagachi, won the Academy Award for Documentary Feature in 2004. [34]

The documentary entitled Tales of The Night Fairies by Prof. Shohini Ghosh and Dr. Sabeena Ghadioke from Asia's leading Media institute AJK, Mass Communication Research Centre, is about the Sonagachi area. It has won the Jeevika Award for the best documentary feature on livelihood in India. [35]

Popular actor Kamal Haasan's movie Mahanadhi has a storyline based on the Sonagachi. The film won three awards at the 41st National Film Awards. It received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil and H. Sridhar and K. M. Surya Narayan received the National Film Award for Best Audiography. [36] It also won Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for Best Film.

The Malayalam Film Calcutta News depicts the story of women being trafficked and forced to become sex worker in Sonagachi. [37]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex worker</span> Person who works in the sex industry

A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry. According to one view, sex work is voluntary "and is seen as the commercial exchange of sex for money or goods". Thus it differs from sexual exploitation, or the forcing of a person to commit sexual acts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prostitution in Thailand</span>

Prostitution in Thailand is not itself illegal, but public solicitation for prostitution is prohibited if it is carried out "openly and shamelessly" or "causes nuisance to the public". Due to police corruption and an economic reliance on prostitution dating back to the Vietnam War, it remains a significant presence in the country. It results from poverty, low levels of education and a lack of employment in rural areas. Prostitutes mostly come from the northeastern (Isan) region of Thailand, from ethnic minorities or from neighbouring countries, especially Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos. In 2019, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimated the total population of sex workers in Thailand to be 43,000.

Sonagachi is a neighbourhood in Kolkata, India, located in North Kolkata near the intersection of Jatindra Mohan Avenue with Beadon Street and Sovabazar, about one kilometer north of the Marble Palace area. Sonagachi is among the largest red-light districts in Asia and the world with several hundred multi-storey brothels residing more than 16,000 commercial sex workers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prostitution in India</span>

Prostitution is legal in India, but a number of related activities including soliciting, kerb crawling, owning or managing a brothel, prostitution in a hotel, child prostitution, pimping and pandering are illegal. There are, however, many brothels illegally operating in Indian cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Pune, and Nagpur, among others. UNAIDS estimate there were 657,829 prostitutes in the country as of 2016. Other unofficial estimates have calculated India has roughly 3 million prostitutes. India is widely regarded as having one of the world's largest commercial sex industry. It has emerged as a global hub of sex tourism, attracting sex tourists from wealthy countries. The sex industry in India is a multi-billion dollar one, and one of the fastest growing.

Sanlaap is an Indian feminist non-governmental organisation, established by Indrani Sinha in 1987 in Calcutta. Based in Calcutta, the group aims to protect the human rights of women and girls. Sanlaap is a developmental organisation that works towards correction of social imbalances which present themselves as gender injustice and violence against women and children. The primary work is focused against trafficking of women and children for commercial sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and forced prostitution. As part of its work, the group starts shops to train girls to make a living and foster their independence.

Budhwar Peth is one of many commercial localities in the old city of Pune, India. The area is located in the heart of the city has a high number of electronics shops, and is known for its red-light district. Three out of the five important Ganesh Mandals i.e. Jogeshwari Ganpati, Guruji Talim Mandal, Tulshibaug Ganpati are located here, as is Appa Balwant Chowk, known as ABC.

Prostitution in Myanmar is illegal, but widespread. Prostitution is a major social issue that particularly affects women and children. UNAIDS estimate there to be 66,000 prostitutes in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee</span> Nonprofit organization in Calcutta, India

The Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee, or simply Durbar, is a collective of 60,000 sex workers in West Bengal. Established on 15 February 1992, in Sonagachi, the largest red-light district in Kolkata, West Bengal, India with estimated 11,000 sex workers, Durbar has been working on women's rights and sex workers' rights advocacy, anti-human trafficking and HIV/AIDS prevention. The Durbar states that its aims are the challenging and altering of the barriers that form the everyday reality of sex workers' lives as they relate to their poverty or their ostracism. Durbar runs 51 free clinics for sex workers across West Bengal, with support from organisations such as the Ford Foundation and the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), who also help Durbar in its initiatives like networking, rights protection and creating alternative livelihood for sex workers.

Prostitution in Guatemala is legal but procuring is prohibited. There is an offence of “aggravated procuring” where a minor is involved. Keeping a brothel is not prohibited.

Prostitution in Ecuador is legal and regulated, as long as the prostitute is over the age of 18, registered, and works from a licensed brothel. Prostitution is widespread throughout the country. Many brothels and prostitutes operate outside the regulatory system and the regulations have been less strictly enforced in recent years. 25,000 prostitutes were registered in the year 2000. In 2007 it was estimated that 70% of the prostitutes in the country were from Colombia. The country attracts Colombian prostitutes as the currency is the US$ rather than the unstable Colombian peso. UNAIDS estimate there to be 35,000 prostitutes in the country.

Prostitution in Paraguay is legal for persons over the age of 18, but related activities such as brothel keeping are prohibited. Prostitution is common in the country. Brothels are also common, even some rural villages have a small bar/brothel on the outskirts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prostitution in Pakistan</span>

Prostitution in Pakistan is a taboo culture of sex-trade that exists as an open secret but illegal. Prostitution is largely based in organisational setups like brothels or furthered by individual call girls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex workers' rights</span> Human, health, and labor rights of sex workers and their clients

Sex workers' rights encompass a variety of aims being pursued globally by individuals and organizations that specifically involve the human, health, and labor rights of sex workers and their clients. The goals of these movements are diverse, but generally aim to legalize or decriminalize sex work, as well as to destigmatize it, regulate it and ensure fair treatment before legal and cultural forces on a local and international level for all persons in the sex industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prostitution in Bangladesh</span>

Prostitution is legal and regulated in Bangladesh. Prostitutes must register and state an affidavit stating that they are entering prostitution of their own free choice and that they are unable to find any other work. Bangladeshi prostitutes often suffer poor social conditions and are frequently socially degraded.

Prostitution in Kenya is widespread. The legal situation is complex. Although prostitution is not criminalised by National law, municipal by-laws may prohibit it.. It is illegal to profit from the prostitution of others, and to aid, abet, compel or incite prostitution.. UNAIDS estimate there to be 133,675 prostitutes in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prostitution in Laos</span>

Prostitution in Laos is regarded as a criminal activity and can be subject to severe prosecution. It is much less common than in neighbouring Thailand. Soliciting for prostitution takes place mainly in the city's bars and clubs, although street prostitution also takes place. The visibility of prostitution in Laos belies the practice's illegality. As of 2016, UNAIDS estimates there to be 13,400 prostitutes in the country.

Prostitution in Togo is legal and commonplace. Related activities such as solicitation, living off the earnings of prostitution or procuring are prohibited. Punishment is up to 10 years imprisonment if minors or violence is involved.

Prostitution in Botswana is not illegal, but laws such as public disorder, vagrancy, loitering and state recognised religious provisions are used to prosecute prostitutes. Related activities such as soliciting and brothel keeping are illegal. Botswana has made proposals to make prostitution legal to prevent the spread of AIDS. However, there has been mass opposition to it by the Catholic Church. Prostitution is widespread and takes place on the street, bars, hotels, brothels and the cabs of long-distance trucks.

Prostitution in Angola is illegal and prevalent since the 1990s. Prostitution increased further at the end of the civil war in 2001. Prohibition is not consistently enforced. Many women engage in prostitution due to poverty. It was estimated in 2013 that there were about 33,000 sex workers in the country. Many Namibian women enter the country illegally, often via the border municipality of Curoca, and travel to towns such as Ondjiva, Lubango and Luanda to work as prostitutes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prostitution in Mumbai</span>

Mumbai, is a city in India which contains the neighborhood of Kamathipura, one of the largest red-light districts in Asia. India is regarded as having one of the largest commercial sex trades globally. These neighborhoods are so large and popular that Mumbai has been called the "ultimate destination" for sex tourism. The red-light districts or lal bazaars in Mumbai are inhabited by thousands of sex workers including women, men, children, and transgender people.

References

  1. ↑ Catrin Evans and Helen Lambert (2008). "The limits of behaviour change theory: Condom use and contexts of HIV risk in the Kolkata sex industry". Culture, Health & Sexuality . 10 (1). Taylor & Francis: 27–41. doi:10.1080/13691050701561393. PMID   18038279. S2CID   24642896.
  2. ↑ Sinha, Sunny. “Ethical and Safety Issues in Doing Sex Work Research: Reflections From a Field-Based Ethnographic Study in Kolkata, India.” Qualitative Health Research 27, no. 6 (May 2017): 893–908. doi : 10.1177/1049732316669338
  3. ↑ Ghosal, Sayantan; Jana, Smarajit; Mani, Anandi; Mitra, Sandip; Roy, Sanchari (2020). ""Sex Workers, Stigma and Self-Image: Evidence from Kolkata Brothels"". The Review of Economics and Statistics . 104 (3): 1–45. doi:10.1162/rest_a_01013. ISSN   0034-6535. S2CID   229182008.
  4. ↑ Dalla, Rochelle L.; Kreimer, Lee M. (13 October 2016). ""After Your Honor is Gone…": Exploration of Developmental Trajectories and Life Experiences of Women Working in Mumbai's Red-Light Brothel Districts". Sexuality & Culture. 21 (1): 163–186. doi:10.1007/s12119-016-9388-4. ISSN   1095-5143. S2CID   146803616.
  5. ↑ Vijayendra Rao and Indrani Gupta and Michael Lokshin and Smarajit Jana (2003). "Sex workers and the cost of safe sex: the compensating differential for condom use among Calcutta prostitutes". Journal of Development Economics . 71 (2): 585–603. doi:10.1016/S0304-3878(03)00025-7. ISSN   0304-3878. S2CID   153608532.
  6. ↑ Satarupa Dasgupta (2019). "Participation as a Health Communication Strategy in HIV/AIDS Intervention Projects: an Examination of a Project Targeting Commercial Sex Workers in India". Atlantic Journal of Communication. 27 (2). Routledge: 139–151. doi:10.1080/15456870.2019.1574535. S2CID   150465047.
  7. ↑ Mishra, Swasti Vardhan. “Reading Kolkata’s Space of Prostitution as a Political Society.” Environment and Urbanization ASIA 7, no. 2 (September 2016): 267–76. doi : 10.1177/0975425316655653
  8. 1 2 "Facts on Human Trafficking". www.saribari.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2009.
  9. 1 2 "Plight of prostitutes in Kolkata". Merinews.com. Archived from the original on 5 December 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  10. ↑ RAY, SANJOY (15 September 2010). "Trafficked girls from NE end up in Kolkata brothels". assamtribune.com.
  11. ↑ Shahidullah, Shahid M. (2017). Crime, Criminal Justice, and the Evolving Science of Criminology in South Asia: India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Springer. p. 230. ISBN   9781137507501.
  12. ↑ Subhas, Biswajit. "police rescue girl from red light area in kolkata".
  13. 1 2 "Vulnerability of Children Living in the Red Light Areas of Kolkata, India" (PDF). End Child Prostitution and Trafficking. July 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  14. ↑ "Jabala Jaag". CRY. Archived from the original on 8 December 2007. Retrieved 16 August 2007.
  15. 1 2 Rose, Madison Leigh (27 August 2012). "Red Light City: Sex Workers' Experiences of the City of Joy". Madison Leigh Rose. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  16. 1 2 Chaudhuri, Himika (18 February 2002). "Garia home for aged sex workers - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  17. 1 2 Gill, Harsimran. "Living in the Shadows" (PDF). Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  18. ↑ Grant, Matthew (30 November 2004). "Girl-trafficking hampers Aids fight". BBC News.
  19. ↑ Prostitutes Calcutta Sex Slaves. Across.co.nz (7 November 2005). Retrieved on 23 October 2011.
  20. ↑ Ghose, Chandreyee (27 November 2015). "When dreams find voice, it's time to say fatafati". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  21. ↑ "As Songachi changes colours, visitors drawn by art, not lust". The Times of India . July 2018.
  22. ↑ "Prostitutes and AIDS in India". Alicia Patterson Foundation. Archived from the original on 15 October 2007.
  23. ↑ Girl-trafficking hampers Aids fight BBC news. 30 November 2004
  24. ↑ In Sonagachi, keeping HIV away a daily battle. Indian Express (2 December 2009). Retrieved on 23 October 2011.
  25. 1 2 Welcome to Sonagachi – Calcutta's largest brothel area is thriving. Tom Vater (12 May 2004). Retrieved on 23 October 2011.
  26. 1 2 3 "Rickshaw pullers" (PDF). Shodhganga. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  27. ↑ Ghosh, Aditya; Gupta, Jayanta (20 September 2001). "C'mon baby, light my fire". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  28. ↑ Kolkata cop's wife in prostitution racket Rediff.com
  29. 1 2 3 4 Mitra, Nabamita; Chatterjee, Chandreyee; Chattopadhyaya, Sanjoy (1 April 2007). "New girls on the block". The Telegraph. Calcutta, India. Archived from the original on 12 November 2007. The Telegraph – 1 April 2007
  30. 1 2 "Hidden sex trade -callgirls of kolkatta". United States National Library of Medicine Gateway. Archived from the original on 29 April 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2007.
  31. ↑ Call girl aide to catch criminals- 230 escorts brought into the detective department fold The Telegraph – 12 May 2006
  32. ↑ durbar.org, homepage of the Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee
  33. ↑ Sex work is real work: We demand workers rights Archived 12 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine , announcement of the 1997 sex worker convention
  34. ↑ "NY Times: Born into Brothels". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times . 2007. Archived from the original on 28 December 2007. Retrieved 23 November 2008.
  35. ↑ "Welcome to AJK Mass Communication Research Centre". Ajkmcrc.org. Archived from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  36. ↑ "Directorate of Film Festival" (PDF). Iffi.nic.in. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  37. ↑ "review of the film Calcutta News". Archived from the original on 14 October 2007.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.