A new short film spotlights the caste-based sex work tradition still trapping girls in Madhya Pradesh

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

The View From India Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective.

First Day First Show News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming.

Today's Cache Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day.

Data Point Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers

Health Matters Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there

The Hindu On Books Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features.

A stills from ‘Khilawadi’ | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

In an early scene from Khilawadi, director Shobhita Thakur’s debut short film, 12-year-old Sapna stands outside a primary health centre, transfixed by a lady doctor through a window. The glance offers a glimpse into her aspirations, but the collective identity of her community stands between her and those dreams.

Khilawadi premiered at the FascinAsian Film Festival in May, where it won the Audience Choice Award at the Calgary leg of the festival and the Best short film award at the Edmonton leg.

The 26-minute film follows Sapna, a young girl from the Banchhada caste in Madhya Pradesh, a community known for its “tradition” of family-based sex work. As she grapples with caste identity, she also faces mounting family pressure to pay off debts through her own exploitation.

A still from ‘Khilawadi’ | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Originally from Bhopal, filmmaker Shobhita Thakur says she has been familiar with the Banchhada community since childhood and knew she wanted to explore their stories when making her debut film. “The idea of women being pushed into a profession because of where they are born and the caste they belong to stayed with me for a long time. The fact that such exploitation is upheld in the name of tradition makes it even harder for women to escape these systems,” says Shobhita, who also belongs to a Scheduled Caste community.

“Coming from a marginalised background, I faced challenges in pursuing my passion. I am only the second woman in my extended family to earn a degree, after my elder sister. My mother was forced to quit school after Class eight because of her caste, despite coming from a financially well-off family,” says the filmmaker, who graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, in 2012.

Director Shobhita Thakur | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Shobhita began her research with documentaries and books, including India’s Child Sex Highway, produced by Al J