A global award for campaign on Kurla acid attack victim
Last September, a young Kurla girl, 19-year-old Reshma Bano Qureshi became the face of a global drive against the open sale of acid – a face that she reasserted as beautiful even after her brother-in-law threw a cup of acid burning deep into her skin, damaging her eyes, and all her features. The Cannes Glass: Lion for Change celebrates her spirit and resilience, not just an inspiration for other victims, but a champion for change.
When Reshma was in Allahabad she persuaded her sister to lodge a complaint against her abusive husband– the attack was how he retaliated. Then in 2015, a Delhibased NGO called ‘Make love not scars’ started an online petition to ban the overthe-counter availability. The petition has received 3 lakh signatures. The NGO then approached O&M that conceptualised an ad campaign.
She doesn’t shy from the camera – or the mirror – and people world over have responded positively to her ‘Beauty tips by Reshma’ video blog – one demos a make-up application, where the tagline reads: It takes two minutes to put on blush but only three seconds to burn a face #endacidsale.
Reshma is elated: “The campaign tries to remove the stigma attached to acid attacks, to say that it is not the perpetrator’s fault.”
Harshik Suraiyya and Geetanjali Jaiswal, associate creative directors at O&M, said “Acid attack is not a new crime in our country. Yet, all of us somehow manage to turn a blind eye towards it. We are proud to be able to create communication to address such a pertinent social evil.”
When Reshma was in Allahabad she persuaded her sister to lodge a complaint against her abusive husband– the attack was how he retaliated. Then in 2015, a Delhibased NGO called ‘Make love not scars’ started an online petition to ban the overthe-counter availability. The petition has received 3 lakh signatures. The NGO then approached O&M that conceptualised an ad campaign.
She doesn’t shy from the camera – or the mirror – and people world over have responded positively to her ‘Beauty tips by Reshma’ video blog – one demos a make-up application, where the tagline reads: It takes two minutes to put on blush but only three seconds to burn a face #endacidsale.
The campaign is one of the six campaigns selected globally for work which sets out to impact ingrained gender inequality, imbalance or injustice. It is one of the three winners from India. Ria Sharma of ‘Make love not scars’ said, “We are hoping there are some grassroots level changes and open sale of acid is not permitted anywhere.”
Reshma is elated: “The campaign tries to remove the stigma attached to acid attacks, to say that it is not the perpetrator’s fault.”
Harshik Suraiyya and Geetanjali Jaiswal, associate creative directors at O&M, said “Acid attack is not a new crime in our country. Yet, all of us somehow manage to turn a blind eye towards it. We are proud to be able to create communication to address such a pertinent social evil.”
