This woman is helping acid attack survivors heal their trauma

While survivors of acid attacks carry visible marks of their fight, Sushma (name changed) carries the scars within her.

In 2016, Sushma got married, hoping for a bright future. Unfortunately, her hopes were shattered as her husband turned out to be an alcoholic and subjected her to domestic violence.

Despite the tremendous challenges, she chose to remain married. After the birth of their baby boy, the couple decided to relocate from their hometown to Delhi, seeking a fresh start. However, the change in location did not bring the change she had hoped for.

One day after an intense argument, her husband reached for a bottle of acid and forced her to drink it.

With each gulp, the searing pain caused by the acid spread through Sushma's body. The sensation was beyond excruciating. The acid damaged her food pipe completely. She could not eat or drink without external assistance.

“I lost my will to live after the attack,” she tells HerStory.

However, her distress did not end there. After the accident, she shifted to her hometown where her husband attempted to harm her again. After navigating through multiple hospital shifts and enduring three years of extensive treatment, along with significant financial expenditure, she finally found a home in "Apna Ghar" located in Delhi.

Apna Ghar is a shelter home run by Brave Soul Foundation that serves as a secure haven for survivors of acid attacks who have been abandoned by their families. It was started in 2021 by Shaheen Malik, an acid attack survivor who has been working on the issues of acid attack and gender-based violence since 2013.

The shelter home provides the survivors with medical intervention, therapy, skill development and legal aid alongside offering food and shelter.

“After two years of treatment, I had already exhausted a lot of money. Then I got to know about Brave Soul Foundation and Apna Ghar. After I shifted to the shelter home, my treatment and medication were arranged by the NGO. I also received 3 lakh in compensation from the government,” Sushma says.

While she is still fighting the case against her husband the shelter home takes care of Sushma’s food and medication. She is also taking English and basic Computer classes.

“This shelter home has given me a will to live and a place to call home,” she tells HerStory.

Scarred for life

Malik was pursuing an MBA from Punjab Technical College while working as a student counsellor. In 2009, she was leaving the premises, when she was attacked by a man sent by her employer.

“Initially I thought someone was playing some prank on me. But seconds later, I could feel my skin burning. I shouted and people gathered around and started to pour water on my face. Each drop of water felt like needles going into my skin,” she describes.

As of now, she has undergone a total of 25 surgical procedures. After the attack, she completely lost vision in one of her eyes, while retaining partial sight in the other.

“I hid myself after the attack. I was depressed and hopeless. My face had been my identity which I lost because of the attack and that was extremely painful. Seeing myself in the mirror every day, carrying those scars, I felt like a lost cause,” she shares.

However, in 2013, Malik decided to step out and start working because of the increased financial burden. As such, she joined an organisation working for acid attack survivors.

She further explains that for an acid attack survivor, apart from the physical and emotional damage, financial burden becomes a big challenge. She says that acid attack survivors require lifelong treatment and care. They live on medication for a lifetime and undergo around 10 to 15 surgeries or more and each surgery costs around a lakh.

Their immune system and general health are also affected. Additionally, there is a huge increase in expenses coupled with the loss of employment due to disability.

“Victims become a financial burden on the family and in many cases, they are abandoned by their own families,” she says.

Even when employers hire victims of acid attacks, they expect them to work like the others, forgetting about their physical challenges. Moreover, the trials take a long time, and the survivors cannot move on with their lives, Malik explains.

"Survivors often grapple with a profound loss of identity in the aftermath of such incidents. The lifelong disabilities and visible scars are a constant reminder of the violation of their bodily integrity. Moreover, the reactions of others, ranging from startled children to individuals who consciously or subconsciously fail to hide their gaze from survivors, further magnify the emotional turmoil. This societal discrimination can sometimes escalate to the extent of untouchability. Survivors can very often feel suicidal,” the founder adds.

The realisation that India lacks resources and rehabilitation centres for victims of acid attacks pushed Malik to start Brave Soul Foundation and Apna Ghar.

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Building blocks of life

The shelter home provides food, medical assistance, and legal aid to the survivors. In the last two years, it has helped in conducting over 50 reconstructive surgeries for which the NGO has tied up with four hospitals in NCR. Malik has so far helped around 200 acid attack survivors.

People from Bihar, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh have been a part of Apna Ghar. The shelter home offers basic English and Computer classes to the women. Simultaneously, they provide assistance in procuring compensation from the government, as well as guiding survivors through the process of filing legal cases and transferring their petitions from other states to Delhi.

Since most girls are teenagers, the NGO also offers them the opportunity to complete their education at open schools and colleges.

Women who do not stay at the shelter home are provided with a monthly supply of groceries and medication. They also are given financial assistance of Rs 4,000 to Rs 5,000 as per their needs.

The NGO receives funding from its partners and also through donations.

Malik believes that in the aftermath of the acid attack, most survivors suffer from social withdrawal, social isolation, and depression. She says that at this time support is vital for the proper and complete rehabilitation of acid burn victims.

“Acid attacks come with some form of disability for most people. It becomes very difficult to accept this new reality,” she adds. As such the NGO also offers psychological therapy to each survivor for their overall rehabilitation.

So far the NGO has one centre in Delhi and one in Kolkata. However, Malik's vision for Apna Ghar encompasses a nationwide expansion, aiming to establish its presence in every state across the country. She also advocates for a ban on the retail sale of acid.

Furthermore, Malik wishes that the world becomes more sensitive towards such people and provides more employment opportunities that empower them to rebuild their lives and reintegrate into society.

“We cannot change what happened in the past but we can surely help in creating a better and more hopeful future for the survivors,” Malik says.