Kolkata Sanved
Rs. 4,586,529 awarded over three years to Kolkata Sanved
Kolkata Sanved uses dance movement therapy (DMT) to support young men and women who have been trafficked, sexually violated and abused. The therapy helps them come to terms with their situation, overcome their sense of guilt and alienation from their own bodies, and begin on a path of self-realisation, confidence building and, finally, reintegration into mainstream society.
Kolkata Sanved’s work is built on the premise that rehabilitation programmes using traditional counselling alone are not successful and reintegration is not sustainable for the victims. Dance movement therapy provides an alternative approach to psychosocial rehabilitation that ensures the rights to participation and development of the individual – helping them come out of their situation and live an independent and complete life.
Through its approach, Kolkata Sanved attempts to provide a sense of ‘Sampoornata’ (fulfillment) through the psychotherapeutic use of movement and dance by which individuals can engage creatively in a process which can further their physical, emotional, cognitive and social integration. The method is participatory, allowing participants to develop life skills important for their reintegration through a non-threatening, non-judgmental and culturally familiar medium.
There is irony in the fact that dance has for many years been used as a medium by which women are exploited. The use of dance is not readily accepted socially, politically or culturally as a medium of social change. However, the approach has yielded results and proved that body movements, when used sensitively, can become a powerful tool for confidence building, rehabilitation, reintegration and advocacy.
With our grant, Kolkata Sanved has facilitated the healing and recovery of children in five government shelter homes in the state of West Bengal. It has also worked to raise awareness and support for the use of DMT within rehabilitation programmes in government shelter homes. Through the programme, Kolkata Sanved has reached 665 children and 47 care providers. Eleven girls have undergone a ‘Training of trainer’ programme and it is expected that they will be able to spread the idea of using DMT to all the other government shelter homes for boys and girls in West Bengal.
