Blood Speaks: A Ritual of Exile by Poulomi Basu Blood Speaks comprises of three VR films, photographs, projections, sound scapes and interviews in order to crack open the veil of silence and shame experienced by women, linking menstrual exile to wider conversations con- cerning normalized gender-based violence. Blood Speaks doesn’t seek to just inform, it seeks to immerse audiences in a hidden world, making them bear witness to the injustice of this practice. The origin of this violence is the impurity of a woman’s menstrual blood. Hidden, under reported and unresolved, these women are untouchable. Perpetrated under the guise of Hindu tradition, this violence takes the form of ‘exiles’ which keeps menstruation shrouded in mystery and taboo, a weapon to shame women into subservience. Central to this story is the ritual of Chaupadi in Nepal in which girls and women are forced to endure an exile in rudimentary shelters, many barely sufficient for animals, while they are menstruating. Chaupadi sits within an intricate web of abuse and patriarchy, interrelated with issues of child mar- riage and child widows.This is one of the most brutal and degrading human rights violations to women. During this menstrual exile women are often abused, bitten by snakes, raped and even murdered. Supported by the Magnum Foundation Emergency Fund and the Prince Claus Fund. Blood Speaks has been previous shortlisted for the Sheffield Doc Fest Alternate Realities Commission Award, International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) and the Tim Her thington Visionar y Award.

Blood Speaks comprises of three VR films, photographs, projections, sound scapes and interviews in order to crack open the veil of silence and shame experienced by women, linking menstrual exile to wider conversations con- cerning normalized gender-based violence. Blood Speaks doesn’t seek to just inform, it seeks to immerse audiences in a hidden world, making them bear witness to the injustice of this practice. The origin of this violence is the impurity of a woman’s menstrual blood. Hidden, under reported and unresolved, these women are untouchable. Perpetrated under the guise of Hindu tradition, this violence takes the form of ‘exiles’ which keeps menstruation shrouded in mystery and taboo, a weapon to shame women into subservience. Central to this story is the ritual of Chaupadi in Nepal in which girls and women are forced to endure an exile in rudimentary shelters, many barely sufficient for animals, while they are menstruating. Chaupadi sits within an intricate web of abuse and patriarchy, interrelated with issues of child mar- riage and child widows.This is one of the most brutal and degrading human rights violations to women. During this menstrual exile women are often abused, bitten by snakes, raped and even murdered. Supported by the Magnum Foundation Emergency Fund and the Prince Claus Fund. Blood Speaks has been previous shortlisted for the Sheffield Doc Fest Alternate Realities Commission Award, International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) and the Tim Her thington Visionar y Award.

Blood Speaks: A Ritual of Exile by Poulomi Basu Blood Speaks comprises of three VR films, photographs, projections, sound scapes and interviews in order to crack open the veil of silence and shame experienced by women, linking menstrual exile to wider conversations con- cerning normalized gender-based violence. Blood Speaks doesn’t seek to just inform, it seeks to immerse audiences in a hidden world, making them bear witness to the injustice of this practice. The origin of this violence is the impurity of a woman’s menstrual blood. Hidden, under reported and unresolved, these women are untouchable. Perpetrated under the guise of Hindu tradition, this violence takes the form of ‘exiles’ which keeps menstruation shrouded in mystery and taboo, a weapon to shame women into subservience. Central to this story is the ritual of Chaupadi in Nepal in which girls and women are forced to endure an exile in rudimentary shelters, many barely sufficient for animals, while they are menstruating. Chaupadi sits within an intricate web of abuse and patriarchy, interrelated with issues of child mar- riage and child widows.This is one of the most brutal and degrading human rights violations to women. During this menstrual exile women are often abused, bitten by snakes, raped and even murdered. Supported by the Magnum Foundation Emergency Fund and the Prince Claus Fund. Blood Speaks has been previous shortlisted for the Sheffield Doc Fest Alternate Realities Commission Award, International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) and the Tim Her thington Visionar y Award. Music by: Tyops/Creative Commons