30 days, 40 women and three cities... This was sufficient to get not just the nation, but countries overseas talking about online posts of women sporting cow masks - something 23-year-old Sujatro Ghosh , the man behind these posts, terms as an 'art discourse'.Who are these women, and why are they sporting cow masks, the uninitiated might ask. They are part of the independent photographer's photo series comprising women of different ages, professions and economic strata, going about their daily lives in the mask of a cow. Almost silently, the series broke through the clutter of news debates, reports and protests around the cow debate, and went on to become a talking point in social circles, online and otherwise"Fighting extremism physically was never an option, so photography was the next best avenue," says Sujatro, who admits that it was the irony of the fact that cattle are far more important and safer than women in India that led him to start the project. "Every 15 minutes, there's a rape reported in the country. And if vigilantes can go to the extent of lynching people in order to protect the cow, why can't we speak up for women?" asks the photographer, who hails from Kolkata. And it is this very question that Sujatro's visuals seem to ask. Beginning his project at Delhi's iconic India Gate, the Jamia Millia Islamia alumnus has since then taken it to other cities as well, including Kolkata and Mumbai.But Sujatro really owes the success of the series to the women who posed for him. "The topic is socially-sensitive, but female friends and acquaintances believed in the idea. As soon as the posts went up on social media, women from big and small towns began to get in touch, showing interest in taking part. In that sense, the project is a public collaborative effort," adds Sujatro, who has photographed over 40 women till now, including two girls from Moscow and Boston.Interestingly, while shooting in public spaces, nobody questioned or stopped Sujatro from shooting. "Many didn't even understand what we were doing, while others just walked past, save for a few who were really concerned about the issue at large. It is really a reflection about how deep-rooted the apathy is," he says. But understandably so, Sujatro has received flak for his work. "Among all the backlash I've got, I've also been told that I should be lynched. But that's hardly a concern. The project isn't divided by barriers of religion, caste or creed, and I believe it is being talked about across the world because people identify the subject as a global issue," says Sujatro.The series has gone viral, but Sujatro wants to now take the project across India and is currently crowdfunding for the same. He says. "I want to travel with the series along the Western coast, down to Kerala, and the North-East as well. My aim is to complete the project by the end of August." Till date, he has collected about 44 per cent of the total target amount.While signing off, Sujatro says, "It's important for people to know that I started this project when I had no access to the media. It's a social media project and all pictures have been taken on a mobile phone. This is something all of us are capable of doing today. We all have access to decent phones, so it's really up to us to start a dialogue for change."Interestingly, some women have taken cue from the series to assert their own identities or implement the subject into their own practices. Akanksha Shah, 17, though based in Moscow, participated in the project when she visited Mumbai. "I aspire to be a ballet dancer, and posing like one for the project, with a cow mask, was my way of defining myself. I truly feel women are somewhat limited as compared to men, wherever they might be," says Akanksha, one of the youngest women to participate in the project. On the other hand, 25-year-old dance/movement therapy student Deepa Sai Avula has been inspired to collaborate with Sujatro on a couple of dance videos. "I recently started my own Instagram handle, @danceformentalhealth. When I came across Sujatro's work, I thought that collaborating with him would somewhere help contribute to the silent protest. I plan to use semi-classical Indian dance movements," says Deepa, who is studying mental health counselling in Boston."I procured the latex cow mask from New York at a cost of $40. The moment I laid my eyes on it, I knew how I was going to use it as a symbol to start a dialogue around the issue." — SujatroEvery woman in the country can relate to the statement the series makes. It's sad that thousands of women who suffer domestic violence, honour killing, rape and harassment don't have a voice, while killing a cow attracts a lot of attention. Cows are indeed lucky. Dhanashree Heblikar , creative director at Swatantra Theatre and Films

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