Rape, Resistance and Resilience: Critiquing Urmi Bhattacheryya’s After I was Raped as a Testimonio of Sexual Violence and Survival

Rape is not a new phenomenon, nor is it a new subject for study. As long as humans have taken an interest in the property, rape has been theorised. Additionally, the critique of rape has been a part of the feminist movement since the first women voiced resistance against being viewed as property. Rape destroys the ‘victim's’ sense of self, making it impossible for her to recognize who she was and is. This dehumanisation is perpetuated in the aftermath of rape through subsequent interactions with the expectations and judgments of others. At a time when only high-profile, sensationalised sexual assault cases provoke a collective reaction, what happens to the survivors who are left to fend for themselves in an apathetic society and an indifferent legal system? In After I was Raped, Urmi Bhattacheryya’s sensitive depiction of these little-known survivors' lives poses difficult but crucial questions regarding our convenient collective amnesia. The book concerns with five individuals - a four-year-old girl, two Dalit women, an eight-month-old infant and a young professional - who have experienced sexual violence. Bhattacharyya tells the tales of these survivors through extensive interviews with them, their families, and the community at large, highlighting how the assault affected their lives and relationships. The present paper will be putting forth the argument how Bhattacheryya’s book explores the liminal space between ‘victim’ and ‘survivor’ and shatters the silent heroism of survivors. It will also examine how these survivors continue to show their resistance and resilience to the most challenging realities despite being stigmatized, shunned, and burdened by feelings of guilt and despair.

Key Words: Rape, Resistance, Resilience, Survivor, Sexual Violence, Urmi Bhattacheryya