Siwan: Five heavily built, muscular men wait as Chanda Devi opens the metal lock guarding a wooden door. As the door gives way, a 17-year-old in a brown night suit appears out of the shadows. The male constables are caught in disbelief. “I’ve seen her on social media,” says one.
The girl, a local sensation in Siwan, is swept away by the women constables, along with three other minors. They are led to a police van waiting to take them to a rescue home.
Yet, behind the glittering façade of neon lights, rapturous applause, and sequined costumes lies a grim truth: the girl is ‘owned’.
Her ‘owner’ Chanda Devi was reluctant to hand over the keys of the room to the lady constable. Afraid the girl might run away, Devi had imprisoned her, like a prized possession. The fear took hold after one of Devi’s star dancers fled last month in the dead of night. Since then, she has been imprisoning the ‘talent’ in dingy, windowless rooms.
The spell broke on the intervening night of 21 and 22 November, when local police, along with members of the NGOs Mission Mukti Foundation, Mumbai-based Rescue Foundation and Kolkata-based Rescue and Relief Foundation stormed into Devi’s rented accommodation. Devi admitted she had been housing underage orchestra dancers.
To the unfamiliar eye, the midnight raid was a glimpse into the seedy underbelly of Bihar—a trafficking nexus fueled by poverty, deceit, and coercion. These minor girls, mostly from Bengal, Jharkhand, and Nepal, are brought to Bihar to perform provocative dances at weddings, birthdays, and even during Shradhs (a 15-day period in the Hindu lunar calendar to honour one’s ancestors).
Having accompanied NGO volunteers and local police to parts of Siwan where such orchestra performances are held, and where the ‘talent’ is housed, ThePrint found that these minor girls are kept locked in rooms, with their owners standing guard outside and forcing them to escape through a backdoor in case of a threat.
“These minor girls are made to do vulgar dance and in most cases, are also the victims of gang rape, harassment and objectification by drunk men. They are mostly from impoverished families and fall easily into the trap of traffickers who offer them financial stability and fame,” said Virender Kumar Singh, director, Mission Mukti Foundation.
For instance, the 17-year-old rescued in the early hours of Friday was brought to Siwan from West Bengal’s Siliguri three years ago. She was made to sign a contract which said that if she tried to escape, her family would have to pay Rs 80,000 to Chanda Devi.
It also stated that the minor would work as a dancer for ‘Sangeet Orchestra’ and be paid Rs 2,000 per performance. “If I am not available for dance without any reason and if I go to a different orchestra party, I will be liable to pay Rs 80,000 to the owner,” read one clause.
In a separate contract, traffickers changed the identity of a minor girl from Hindu to Muslim. They also got a fake Aadhar card to make it difficult for her family or the police to trace her.
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As a dozen policemen gushed past the blue tin door, a man wearing a white vest refused the presence of any underage dancing girls on the premises. The lady constable shoved him aside and barged in while male constables asked for his licence.
A young girl was curled up on a bed inside with a blanket covering her head. She rubbed her eyes, brushed her golden fringes from her forehead, and murmured, “I am 15.”
“Don’t be afraid. Wear some warm clothes. Pack a few and come with us. We are here to help you,” the female constable told her.
It began with a recce. A volunteer, Anand, posed as a local YouTuber to confirm the locations of orchestras operating with underage dancing girls at the forefront.
On the night of 21 November, the day of the operation, a meeting was held at a government guest house. A dozen police constables, half of them women, and NGO volunteers gathered to strategize the rescue mission. The plan was simple: knock on the door, barge inside, rescue the girls, and ask the ‘owner’ for their licence.
By the end of the night, around 12 minors had been rescued, and five ‘owners’ arrested and booked under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
“These minors will be kept at the rescue home from where they will be sent back to their homes after following all the procedures. Their owners have been arrested,” said Singh.
Before the operation on 21 November, another famous underage dancer was rescued in September this year by Singh’s NGO. It was Priyank Kanoongo, chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), who assigned Singh the task of rescuing the underage dancer with 1.5 million Instagram followers.
Her mother, also a dancer, had made the 13-year-old join the profession citing financial distress. The girl’s unique style—a high ponytail and bold red lipstick—quickly caught everyone’s attention. She became a household name, drawing men from nearby cities like Chhapra and Deoria, all eager to watch her perform. In September, when the team launched a raid at her house, the 13-year-old was hiding under the bed.
Once the police got her out, she said she was afraid and was dancing out of choice. “But what is choice and consent for a 13-year-old? They don’t even fully understand what they are doing,” remarked Singh.
For the last month, the girl has been at a rescue home. Her place in the orchestra was taken by the 17-year-old rescued Friday.
Holding a child in her arms, the 13-year-old’s mother says she will leave for Bengal once her daughter is out of the rescue home. “I will make her leave dancing. She will never dance. We will go back to Bengal.”
But to enter or leave this world of razzmatazz and exploitation is not always a choice. In a video now doing the rounds in Siwan and neighbouring areas, the 13-year-old can be seen telling a local Youtuber, “I am dancing because it’s a majboori (compulsion) not a choice.”
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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