Katti grew up in an Indian brothel in the Kamathipura, the red light district in Mumbai, India. Her mother worked in a factory all day, and she was raised by the women in the brothel. They played with her, brought her sweets and corrected her when she misbehaved. She recalls that many of the sex workers were sold into the industry and spent their lives struggling to pay their debt to the brothel owner so they could leave. One woman who saved up enough money to escape left the brothel weeping, dressed in her best clothes and carrying all her bags. Everybody was waiting to say goodbye as she walked through the streets. The community felt like a big family. It is not the sex workers that are the danger but the men who come into the area. Katti was also abused by the clients. She ultimately moved to a shelter for women from the red-light district, run by Kranti, a support organization. An alumnus of Bard College in the United States heard Katti speak at a conference and assisted her to get a place in the school and full tuition. Her plan is to return to Kamathipura to open a free counseling center for sex workers. But if it was up to her, prostitution would be legal. Then these women could get proper healthcare and go to the police when they're abused.
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