Our Better World’s story on Cactus Foundation drew about 1.74 million views.

As a result, many shared their own stories of abuse to a supportive community on social media, amplifying awareness of the topic and the need to break the silence. 

The story also opened an avenue for some to release memories they had suppressed; many shared directly with Cactus their experiences of being sexually abused as a child, including a 70-year-old woman.

From just 10 volunteers a year, the foundation saw 1,021 sign-ups in just a month, mostly from outside its home city of Solapur. 

This led to Cactus holding events in Mumbai and Hyderabad to meet its volunteers in 2018. It is now exploring how to spread its work to other cities in India.  

“It has given us tremendous boost and confidence...people and organisations who have shared their stories, who want to volunteer for us, who are trying to convince us to start a chapter outside India. This experience is making us more responsible, more committed, more driven. We are realising that the expectations are high and we need to meet these expectations for the sake of the next generation.” — Nusrat Khan Pahade, co-founder, Cactus Foundation