India’s Incredibly Powerful “Abused Goddesses” Campaign Condemns Domestic Violence

 “Save Our Sisters” is an an anti-sex trafficking initiative.

Ad agency Taproot physically recreated scenes from old hand-painted images of Indian goddesses.

Make-up was used to add bruises and wounds to the models before photographing them. This is a recreation of the goddess Saraswati.


All the props were either real or painted on, keeping both authenticity and realism in mind.

“Pray that we never see this day. Today, more than 68% of women in India are victims of domestic violence. Tomorrow, it seems like no woman shall be spared. Not even the ones we pray to.”

Each ad includes a phone number to report abuse to “Save Our Sisters.”

This is a recreation of the goddess Lakshmi, goddess of wealth.

The campaign simply and effectively captures India’s most dangerous contradiction: that of revering women in religion and mythology, while the nation remains incredibly unsafe for its women citizens.

100 million Indians, largely women and girls, are said to be involved in trafficking.

Last year alone 244,270 crimes against women were reported in the country.

This is a recreation of the goddess Durga, worshipped for her strength and invincibility.

For more information on the “Save Our Sisters” initiative, visit their website.