#DakhalDo - Breakthrough India
With its latest awareness campaign Breakthrough India wants young people to intervene and call out acts of violence against women
Some evenings I leave the comfort of my home. Yesterday I invited my Malkin(my mother) to join me for my walk. She also cherishes filter coffee.
While sipping the strong coffee, we both start discussing the multi-tasking abilities of women. “If men are taught the same from childhood they will do the same.” The discussion drifted towards the survival of women in a society that is dominated by men. “Getting one dosa as a kid was like dining in a five-star restaurant. The men or my brothers would get the luxury because they were breadwinners of the family and also men.”
Says a woman who never stops and hardly keeps quiet in front of any injustice. When I was in the 7th standard she had slapped a drunk young man who was hitting her old mother. I had just landed from school. My mother was preparing some food and suddenly we hear loud voices. And the next thing I see my mother in midst of the fight, hitting the guy so hard that he was lying on the floor. My father and I arrived only to escort my mother back home.
People in society were not happy and my father was not happy. “I can’t stand and watch like everyone else. Her fault she refused to give him money. Also, there is no better way to teach a drunkard a lesson.”
#DakhalDo - Breakthrough India
Bystander intervention of any kind in our society is ignored on the simple basis that it is not our problem. With the advent of smartphones, now we are happy to record the moment and upload it on social media. Even if someone dares to move forward he/she is threatened or stopped. Let alone be crimes against women.
According to NCW data, 23,722 complaints of crimes against women were received in 2020, the highest in the last six years. The pandemic also played its role. NCW Chairperson Rekha Sharma pointed out that economic stress, higher stress levels, anxiety, and lack of support from family may have resulted in the heightened number of cases of domestic violence in 2020.
“Victims of domestic violence are distanced from their regular support systems making it difficult for them to call out for help. The series of COVID-19 lockdowns in India reduced the opportunities of reporting of domestic violence cases,” Rekha said to Arre.
Lack of family and society support has been one of the causes of the increase of women violence in society. Breakthrough India wants to encourage bystander intervention for violence against women with its ongoing campaign - Dakhal Do.
Breakthrough India - a human rights organization seeking to make violence and discrimination against women and girls unacceptable roped in Bollywood actor and the popular small town face in the Hindi belt Rajkumar Rao.
According to Newstrack: “Dakhal Do, meaning ‘intervene’ is a multi-year campaign on bystander intervention designed to inspire young people between the ages of 19-25 to intervene and call out acts of violence against women and girls both in public and private spaces.”
Rajkumar announced the association with a quick video explaining the age-old behaviour of standing on the fences and watching the drama. He wants people to come forward and intervene in women’s issues. Small changes like this will bring a larger behaviour mindset change.
“It is our problem. It is our collective problem and we have the responsibility to collectively and responsibly intervene.
Start today. The next time you see/hear/know of violence against women, don’t pretend like it’s not happening,” writes Rajkumar on Twitter.
How can be violence be a personal matter asks RJ Sayema. She and Radio Mirchi have also joined the cause asking Indians to not be a bystander and instead “Dakhal Do.”
The campaign will be an integral part of Breakthrough India's ongoing programs in UP, Haryana, Bihar, and Delhi.
Communication and digital strategies
Website: The campaign has a micro landing page slightly difficult to locate but it is there. The page has a campaign video that narrates the objective. The landing page also emphasises the need for “Why it starts with us.”
The page also talks about how people can participate and share stories of intervention. One can write the story or upload a video. The campaign has integrated WhatsApp for ease of use. So you can start communicating with a specific number to share your story.
To encourage people to come forward, the page has listed some of the stories of intervention.
Social Media: The organization has been active on almost all known social networks from Facebook to Twitter to LinkedIn. The organization has been actively spreading about the cause and leveraging the celebrity association.
However, asking young minds to post a selfie-and asking them to pledge to intervene against women’s violence is a highly overused engagement idea. It is just another form of armchair activism.
I understand that we love selfies not just young minds but someone standing in a loo and taking a selfie for this campaign just kills the soul. Don’t you think so? And that tagging 5 friends on social media is a 2015 idea.
The campaign has very well integrated on TV with its association with NDTV India(Hindi) especially considering that it is targeting the Hindi belt of India.
However, I see the same missing with the blog considering it is the biggest medium of voice and communication and not social media. For the simple matter that we don’t own social media and after few minutes the updates our lost in the newsfeed.
The blog should have posted about the Rajkumar association, ways to participate, and the intervention stories. I understand that media coverage is looked upon as a great source of earned PR but content marketing works in a different way. Read everything about Content Marketing in 2021.
The problem is not with Nonprofits, it is how we marketers have sold digital marketing in terms of engagement and views. Largely NPOs have associated awareness campaigns with making a buzz on social media and following the age-old tricks of the industry by roping in celebrities.
I don’t see it as a problem in fact Breakthrough India so far has used Rajkumar well and social media promotions have been in sync.
However, we need a tighter strategy that holds on to the owned and earned mediums when it comes to digital.
We can’t keep asking a woman to stand for herself when we are also part of the violence. And the issue has been breeding in our society for ages. So “Dakhal Do” is a timely campaign from Breakthrough India and aligns well with the greater cause of making violence and discrimination against women and girls unacceptable.
But why is the campaign only open for 15-25 years only? Obviously, the younger generation is the future of India but the change has to be holistic.
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