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“After Your Honor is Gone…”: Exploration of Developmental Trajectories and Life Experiences of Women Working in Mumbai’s Red-Light Brothel Districts

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Abstract

This investigation was intended, first, to examine the early life and childhood experiences of adult women working in the red-light districts of Mumbai, India. A corollary to this goal was determination of processes that led to entry into the commercial sex industry (CSI). Second, we sought better understanding of women’s adult relationships with family of origin and key players of the brothel-based sex industry (e.g., peers, clients, brothel-keepers). Finally, we explored exiting options. In other words, to what extent is it possible to leave India’s brothel-based sex industry if one wanted to do so? Guided by the life-course theory of development, in-depth interviews were conducted with 30 women working in two red-light districts of Mumbai, India. Most women described childhoods of extreme poverty, had been trafficked into the CSI, and reported minimal social support as adults. Exiting was challenged by multi-faceted cultural and structural constraints. Implications for continued research are provided.

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Notes

  1. Importantly, none of these studies indicated whether or not the samples included survivors of trafficking.

  2. The sharp decline is the result of brothel keepers being bought out by wealthy real estate developers to make room for new industry and expensive housing units (see Jayaraman 2012).

  3. All names are pseudonyms.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 132 MABL, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0236, USA

    Rochelle L. Dalla

  2. Department of Global Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA

    Lee M. Kreimer

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  1. Rochelle L. Dalla
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Correspondence to Rochelle L. Dalla.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Dalla, R.L., Kreimer, L.M. “After Your Honor is Gone…”: Exploration of Developmental Trajectories and Life Experiences of Women Working in Mumbai’s Red-Light Brothel Districts. Sexuality & Culture 21, 163–186 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-016-9388-4

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