Being 12

A school sports day in Sydney Australia. We had to travel by train home after the event and were given permission to wear our sports uniforms home. I was maybe 12 or 13 and wearing only shorts and shirt because my tunic was lost.
On the train one old man pinched my bum! I could hardly believe it so I pinched him back!

Action Shero Dianne Sharma

Place: Sydney, Australia

Being 15

I remember this incident from when i was younger. i was in the bus on my way to school. it had so happened that i didn’t get the school bus and had to catch a public bus to school. I was standing in the ladies section of the bus and it was really crowded. There was someone behind me pushing and shoving me. I thought it was some lady and never looked back until i felt a hand at my waist. i turned around to realize it was a man standing in middle of all the ladies and groping anyone around him. I glared at him and asked him to move to the guys section, i guess that is when everyone realized he was there. All the ladies started screaming and shouting it him and he just saying 'there's no space sister. I am sorry I was'nt being indecent. It's just there's no space'. When did no space become an excuse for groping people??

Action Shero Anonymous

Place: Pune, Maharashtra

Being 12

I was going to my cousin's house for my summer vacation. I was in a bus sitting next to my uncle. There was a lady sitting in front of our seat. There was a guy standing next to her and was intentionally trying to lean on her whenever the bus driver was applying breaks. He was just exaggerating the inertia even more and was trying to rub himself on her. She was giving her looks after every gap of a time but he was pretending as if he was not doing anything. After certain time she stood up and went towards the front and was standing over there. That time I was young enough to understand these things but I couldn't say anything to that guy.

Action Shero Anonymous

Place: Bhojpur, Bihar, India

Being 19

I witnessed my first and last street harassment 10 years back, when was in college. I was 19, a second year student. I accompanied my friend's lover. Since he was out of station on that day I had to go with his girlfriend to the Erode railway station(TN). She was supposed to get the train to Kerala. The arrival time of the train to Kerala would be late night. So we had to wait till it comes. Later another friend also joined with us. That was the first time I sat in railway station at midnight. I didn’t’ have any idea how the guys from various colleges would behave after having drinks, when they go for holidays. I saw so many “fair & handsome” guys reminding me the debutant bollywood heroes. A gang of 10 guys were beating a guy. An old man was scolding them. The gang war between the different or same college boys are very usual and commonly seen everywhere. Then the train arrived to the station. As the train was slowing down many girls rushed to the compartment’s door, and gathered around to get the seat. Only one can go through the compartment's door there might be around 25 girls were waiting around the door as they were carrying heavy bags in both of their hands or one hand. They were busily looking for a way to the door to get in. Some of them tried to keep their bag inside through the window.

My friend (girl) went near to the train tried to get into compartment, myself and another friend were carrying her luggage. We were nearing to the crowd; there I saw a guy who is my junior was coming from another side of the crowd. A girl who was trying to go into the door, He went behind her and pinched that girl’s back and then he came away from there. He was directing towards as and said “hi” then crossed us. Since we were on run to give the luggage to her i didn't even replied him.

After we back my friend told me that He is drunk. (He meant that the drunken fellow isn’t aware what he does. I wonder I never heard any drunkard got the wrong bus or train). I can’t feel as a girl when someone harassed her. But still I couldn’t digest it. Felt shame being a guy. My friends told me these are usually happened. Later I heard some of my classmates do this every time they go to the station. Some guys used to go out for hitting the women in crowd on purpose. A guy told me (some) girls like boys doing this to them. What shocked me more is whoever narrated these things to me had critic as it doesn’t a wrong behavior at all.

In TamilNadu or Kerala as far as I know still you can’t find most of the small town girls wearing any modern dress. Rarely we can see a girl wear other than churidhar. That day when I witnessed that harassment I noticed every girl there with churidhar and put their Duppata both side of their shoulder. But whistling, passing comments, staring as they go are happening everywhere.

Action Shero Anonymous

Place: Coimbatore, India

Being 19

I was in class X , travelling in DTC bus with my elder brother to school.I sat on the left side, in the Ladies only section , on the window seat and my brother went at the back in the men's section. The bus was nearly empty with not more than 8 to 10 people in it, so quite a lot of seats were empty. A man, must be in his 40's , entered and sat besides me. I felt a bit uneasy as firstly, it was a ladies seat, and secondly there were so many seats entirely empty, then why sit with me. I had my school bag on my lap, and my school uniform was salwar kameez. After few minutes , I felt something on my lap, and I looked downwards and I felt my private part being pressed. I was horrified and lifted the bag from my lap to find that man's hand there. I pushed him aside, bursted into tears, shouted on my brother to come sit next to me, and that man ran and got out of bus. Everybody must have understood something had happened, but nobody did anything, my brother , just one year elder to me, asked me what happened, and I could'nt reply but cry. That was the first shocking event of my life when I became aware that such disgusting people exist in this world and since then, travelling in public transport has been a nightmare for me.

Action Shero Anonymous

Place: Janakpuri, New Delhi India

Being 4

I have a most vivid memory of that first experience...of harassment in public spaces.. I was traveling in a bus with my parents... The bus was crowded and to avoid the push i was made to sit in uncle's lap. For those who travel in city buses must have seen this.. I personally offer seat to kids all the time and especially girl child. This lecherous male put his hand in side my shorts and play with my vagina for more than 5 mins...the was so crowded that no one could see it and my mother was standing at some distance.... I must have been 3 or 4 years old. This is one thing ill never forget.. This is one thing I have never shared with any one…

Action Shero Anonymous

Place: Delhi

Being 18

There must have been earlier incidents, but the one I really remember with tangible clarity was when I was groped while getting off a bus in south Calcutta.I was 18 and dressed in loose jeans and my favourite oversized white tshirt. I was new to the city and even though I'd been travelling on my own in public transport since I was 14, I burst into tears.

Action Shero Sunayana

Place: Calcutta, India