Red Light to Limelight

In a red-light district of Kolkata, a group of women reclaim their voices through the power of storytelling.

Given unprecedented access, this film follows Rabin, Bilkis, Afsara and other sex-working mothers who navigate the narrow lanes of an independent brothel district in Kalighat. Together, they form their own grassroots film collective, regularly uploading dynamic visual stories about their lives to YouTube. Their work details their personal struggles and the challenges of their past.

Despite the derision of a deeply conservative society, the women remain determined to become film-makers and actors, attempting to break the cycle of prostitution for the next generation and survive through the art of cinema.

An immersive and emotionally resonant portrait of courage and
self-determination.