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“Why do girls get their rights with conditions and control?"

“Don’t we have the same rights as boys? And why do we get them under a lot of conditions?” Rama (name changed), SELF participant form 2019 batch raised these questions through her comics, one of the skills she learned at the academy along with other girls.

The skill of Grassroots Comics and storytelling is one of the most effective skills that girls learn at the academy. CREA collaborates with the wonderful team of the Rupantaran Foundation from Kolkata to co-develop and facilitate this workshop at the academy.

The workshop introduced the participants to the art/skill of storytelling through comics. The orientation of the skill, the process of story selection, the conceptualization of the story and writing, sketching/drawing techniques and the process of developing it together do this. They select the stories through the process of the girls reflecting on, discussing and choosing the topic of their comics. It could be an experience of their own or others, personal opinion or a social issue, any light/happy or serious issue.

Our sixth SELF-academy had a fantastic workshop on developing the same; girls conceptualized and developed 38-40 comics on various topics. Girls did raise issues of sexual assault, control over their mobility and decisions of their education, work, marriage, etc. Some also conveyed their dreams, aspirations, and negotiation with their parents and other community members. Some of the comics are a part of this update.