Building a support network around those going through assault makes a world of difference, like life and death, recalled actor Parvathy Thiruvothu, launching Stand By Me on Saturday 23 November. The initiative, which aims to support gender survivors. violence based on an active period of time, not only providing emotional support, but also focusing on financial stability. Through Stand By Me, survivors were able to promote their handmade products – bags, clothes, curtains – paving the way to economic independence. One hundred percent of the proceeds go to the survivors.

The initiative was officially launched on Saturday in an online event that began with American soul singer Ben E King performing his song “Stand By Me” – When the night comes, And the earth is dark, And the moon’s the only light we’ll see, No, I won’t be afraid, Oh, I won’t be afraid, As long as you stay, Stay by me.

Parvathy, one of the founding members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), spoke about her experience working with women trying to change the system. She said the first step is to tell the survivor you believe in them. “Personally, I’m more affected when a woman doesn’t believe me than when a man does. Somewhere in me, I expect men not to believe, I knew how to pull this off, I don’t rely on them to believe me. Even when the legal system has failed (some survivors), it means a lot when there is a collective that says we believe what you say,” Parvathy said.

The second step, she said, is pooling resources to demand the justice survivors deserve. Before there was a collective, women, she said, were like isolated islands floating off each other. She emphasized that this is why a collective like WCC or Stand By Me is so important. “It’s not just a network out of compassion and empathy, but to educate that you can ask for space and livelihood. I want to emphasize that claiming a livelihood based on your skills has nothing to do with your fight for justice when you are the wronged one.”