The radio project:

How do women free themselves from economic dependence and gain autonomy after family conflicts? And what can women do when they are affected by sexualized violence?

To strengthen the public discourse on women’s rights, our partner organization Prajna Counselling Centre developed the interactive radio program Bharavaseya Belaku („Light of Hope“). The program has been broadcast every two weeks on the regional radio station All Air India Mangalore since January 2014. It is realized through donations mobilized by Dhira e.V. in Europe. The program is partly structured as a ‚phone-in‘ program so that listeners can call in and ask experts questions. During the program, listeners can share their own experiences and find out about support services. 

Here and here are examples of radio programs.

Here is a sample case study of Mrs. Latha, who has benefited from the radio program.

The Women’s Shelter

Many women do not know where to turn after a sexual assault, financial hardship, or experiences of physical and psychological violence. In such situations, the women’s shelter run by our partner organization Prajna Counselling Centre is an important place of refuge. 

The Prajna Counselling Centre helps in cases of sexualized violence and provides women with medical and psychological care. In the organization’s women’s shelter, women receive legal assistance, accommodation, meals, and help with family conflicts. The care provided to women is designed for the long term. This means that women continue to receive support after their stay at the facility. Dhira e.V. has been supporting the women’s shelter with an emergency fund since 2014.

Workshops on gender equality

How can men and women pursue gainful employment on equal terms, and how can parents ensure that gender equity shapes parenting? These and other questions were addressed during a series of workshops conducted by our partner organization Prajna in 2019 and supported by Dhira with a small project fund from the Schmitz Foundation.

The events addressed different professional groups. The aim was to break down traditional role models and train multipliers who could sensitize others to gender equality – whether in their private lives or work environment.      

Events in Germany 

In addition to lectures on the work of our partner organization, we organize events on the topic of gender justice: with a particular focus on domestic and international feminist issues. 

Whether at events on protest movements, surrogacy, or sexualized violence – at lectures by our members or external speakers, we take a global look at feminist issues and reflect and encourage ourselves and others to broaden their horizons and break down stereotypes.