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Alyssa Milano: Sorry Not Sorry

I Kick and Fly: Ruchira Gupta on Fighting Sex Trafficking

Alyssa Milano: Sorry Not Sorry

Peace By Peace Productions

Politics, News

3.63.5K Ratings

🗓️ 26 June 2023

⏱️ 44 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Fighting sex trafficking is a cause that we are passionate about at Sorry Not Sorry, and our guest this week has made it her life’s work. Ruchira Gupta is a former journalist and founder of Apne Aap, an NGO that works to end child sex trafficking. She’s the author of the acclaimed new novel I Kick and Fly which is based on her experiences.


Praise for I Kick and Fly:


"In I Kick and I Fly, Ruchira Gupta has given young readers an irresistible story, and also one that could save lives. This book is a gift." -- Gloria Steinem


"Any work from Ruchira Gupta is sure to further the cause of liberating women, especially, and in this novel, girls. It takes a strong belief in us, and especially in our young ones, to persevere as she does in both art and politics. The absolute belief that if the heart is moved, so might be the positive activities for justice and freedom, of the mind." -- Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple


"I Kick and I Fly is a powerhouse of a debut. Ruchira Gupta has crafted a page-turner of a read, stepped in place and full of indelible characters, managing to be at once propulsive and enlightening, infuriating and inspiring. But maybe most important, Heera’s story is a beacon of hope to a generation of young people trying to transform an unjust world." -- Gayle Forman, New York Times bestselling author of If I Stay and We Are Inevitable


"Having been to the brothels and red-light district I Kick and I Fly so searingly captures, I can testify that this book is essential reading for anyone interested in how to empower girls to break free from intergenerational prostitution and sex trafficking. Ruchira Gupta is nothing less than a great hero, and in her book, she has created one in Heera, as she seeks to defy the destiny of rape that poverty and men have assigned her." -- Ashley Judd


"An empathetic and unflinching glimpse into a world little known to outsiders. We watch breathlessly, never sure until the very end how she will kick and punch her way past her circumstances to find her own path to freedom." -- Natalie C Anderson


"This book is a call to action, it an invitation for the rest of us to rise from the pall of apathy and join the movement to fight and fight and keep fighting―until we retrieve the last girl from the ugly jaws of the very worst effects of the patriarchy." -- Staceyann Chin


“Gupta renders Heera’s perseverance amid grueling circumstances via straightforward prose and imbues this searing tale with an ominous ambiance that complements its dark themes.” – Publisher’s Weekly


"The depth of the story’s details and its themes of bodily autonomy, community, and women’s empowerment reflect Gupta’s experience as the founder of Apne Aap, an NGO working to end sex trafficking... atriumphant debut." - Kirkus Reviews

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/alyssa-milano-sorry-not-sorry/message

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

This episode of a Lissamolano Sorry Not Sorry contains a frank discussion of sex trafficking,

0:04.4

including child sex trafficking and a graphic description of a non-consensual sexual act.

0:09.0

Some listeners may find this disturbing. Disgression is advised.

0:21.2

Hi, I'm a Lissamolano, and this is Sorry Not Sorry.

0:30.0

Fighting sex trafficking is a cause that I am passionate about and our guest this week has made it her life's work.

0:58.0

Rachira Gupta is a former journalist and founder of APNIAP, an NGO that works to end child sex

1:05.3

trafficking. She's the author of the acclaimed new novel I Kick and Fly, which is based on her experiences.

1:19.7

It is as sinister as it gets. People buying or selling children for sex.

1:24.0

An awful situation. My story is that I was trafficked from the ages of 10 to 14.

1:31.9

And what I think is really relevant now is not the super gory details that a lot of people want me to

1:39.4

talk about, but rather how it happens. After college, I want to work as a teacher.

1:45.3

I will become a doctor. I've got a small job instead of editing.

1:56.4

Our work focuses on running community classrooms and then sponsoring children in mainstream schools

2:02.1

and colleges. So far, we have educated more than 2,000 children breaking the cycle of

2:07.7

intergenerational prostitution in those families. Hello, I'm Rachira Gupta. I'm the author of a book

2:14.4

I Kick and Fly, which is about a young girl who escapes the sex trade by becoming a kung fu champion.

2:22.6

I'm an activist and I work to end sex trafficking because I believe in a world in which no human

2:30.1

being is bought or sold. Sorry, not sorry.

2:38.1

Rachira, thank you so much for joining us today on the podcast. Let's just start out by telling us

2:44.3

a bit about who you are and what you do. I'm an artist, author and activist.

2:51.1

And my dream is to create a world in which no human being, especially children are bought or sold.

2:57.8

I'm a lifelong activist. I work to end sex trafficking girl by girl, law by law.

...

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