Activist and acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal has become the face of ant-acid attack campaign in India. She and another survivor Rupa are the force behind the massive Supreme Court ruling banning over-the-counter sale of acid at retail outlets as well as ordering a compensation of Rs 3 lakh to each acid attack victim.
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Laxmi was just 15 years old when a 32-year-old spurned suitor threw acid on her for rejecting his advances. After undergoing multiple corrective procedures, Laxmi maintains, "He changed my face, not my dreams.”
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Laxmi has been felicitated with many awards including one by by then US First Lady Michelle Obama for successfully leading the campaign against acid attacks on women in India. She is the voice of many campaigns and even has her own campaign StopSaleAcid.
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She has a child, Pihu, with former partner Alok Dixit. The couple made headlines with their decision to not marry. Laxmi said, "We have decided to live together until we die. But we are challenging the society by not getting married. We don’t want people to come to our wedding and comment on my looks. The looks of a bride are most important for people. So we decided not to have any ceremony."
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Laxmi has openly talked about her financial struggles despite being a known figure in India. “People believe that I must be well-off since I received so many awards, walked the ramps, gave talks – but I have no money to meet even my basic needs,” she was quoted by Hindustan Times. After her admission, job offers poured in for her and actor Akshay Kumar even provided her monetary assistance.
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In 2017, Laxmi Agarwal and her group of strong survivors along with tattoo artist Vikas Malani organised a tattoo workshop for acid attack victims who were interested in pursuing the art as a profession.
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Now, her story is all set to be told through the upcoming movie Chhapaak with Deepika Padukone portraying Laxmi on the silver screen.
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