Sindoor, ghoonghat & grit: A day with UP’s ‘Green Army’ & their campaign to school abusive husbands

Women of Green Army demonstrate self-defence techniques. The initiative was started in 2014 | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The women carry sticks to defend themselves. The group has become a refuge for women who don’t want to approach the police against their husbands. Here, the women counsel an alcoholic in Jangal Mahal village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

A Green Army member wears green bangles, Dewara village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Green Army members in Jangal Mahal | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The Green Army has several names. Some refer to it as the ‘Green Group’, Dewara village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

In between their self-defence practice, the women sing songs, pluck fruits from trees, Kushiyari village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The women aim to use martial arts to defend themselves, Dewara village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

As the day ends, the women walk towards their homes to harvest paddy, Dewara village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Most women in the Green Army belong to Dalit and tribal communities, Jangal Mahal village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

Asha Devi, one of the first few women to join the Green Army in Kushiyari, had tried to burn herself because of her husband’s repeated physical abuse | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The Green Army initiative was started by former Banaras Hindu University student Ravi Mishra, Jangal Mahal village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

In Dewara village, the women make slippers in a small factory, a small step to gain some financial independence | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The Green Army comprises around 1,800 members, Jangal Mahal village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint

The unit works together to empower women facing domestic violence. They also counsel alcoholic and abusive men, Dewara village | Photo: Manisha Mondal | ThePrint