Abused Hindu Goddesses: Indian Domestic Violence Campaign Features Lakshmi, Durga And Saraswati (PICTURES)

LOOK: Indian Domestic Violence Campaign Features Hindu Goddesses Bearing The Scars Of Abuse

The combination of religious deities with the results of violence make for a powerful message in this Indian domestic violence campaign.

Featuring the Hindu goddesses Lakshmi, Durga and Saraswati, the shots show the women in typical serene yet powerful poses.

But each goddess bears the scars of physical violence -a graze, black eye, a fat lip and cuts.

Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth

The accompanying text reads: "Pray that we never see this day. Today, more than 68 per cent of women in India are victims of domestic violence. Tomorrow, it seems like no woman shall be spared. Not even the ones we pray to."

A number is provided to report abuse to the Save Our Sisters charity - an initiative that works to prevent the trafficking of young girls and women for the purposes of sexual exploitation.

Saraswati, Goddess of knowledge and arts

As Buzzfeed points out, the campaign captures India's most startling contradiction: that of revering women in religion and mythology, while the nation remains incredibly unsafe for its women citizens.

Last year, 244,270 crimes against women were reported in India, the BBC said - though the number of unreported incidents is thought to be much higher.

And reports of a "rape culture" have been rife since the fatal gang rape of a 23-year-old student on a bus in Delhi in December last year.

Durga, Goddess of victory of good over evil

It led to human rights groups urging the government to reform sexual assault laws.

New Delhi has emerged as the 'rape capital' of India, with 25% of cases across the whole of India occurring in the capital, according to an Al Jazeera report.

A woman is raped in Delhi every 14 hours, according to figures quoted by the BBC.

Honor Blackman

Notable Anti-Domestic Violence Campaigns

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