In this Telugu podcast episode, social activist Sunitha Krishnan; a Padma Shri awardee, co-founder of Prajwala Foundation, one of world’s largest anti-trafficking shelters that rescues, rehabilitates and reintegrates victims into society, speaks about one of the darkest yet most urgent realities of our time, preventing child sexual abuse, human trafficking, and cyber-enabled exploitation.
What happens when child sexual abuse and human trafficking move online, demand creates supply, and society looks away? This conversation with Sunitha Krishnan forces us to confront what most choose not to see.
She takes us through the journey behind a landmark legal fight that contributed to the creation of India’s National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, and explains why the correct term is not child pornography but CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Material). Sunitha breaks down how language matters, how misnaming the crime hides accountability, and why recognizing CSAM is crucial to protecting children.
The conversation exposes how trafficking and abuse have shifted into digital spaces, from social media and dating apps to encrypted platforms like Telegram, where organized networks trade thousands of child abuse videos for small amounts of money. She explains how demand fuels supply, how coded language operates in brothels and online markets, and how technology has silently enabled trafficking networks to scale and globalize abuse. Drawing from her findings in India, the United States, and Europe, she reveals how content produced in India circulates worldwide.
The episode dives deep into secondary victimization, where survivors are blamed, silenced, or retraumatized by legal procedures, institutional failures, and social attitudes. Sunitha discusses brutal cases involving children, the psychology of sexual violence, abuse that goes beyond sexual intent, and how unresolved trauma can perpetuate cycles of harm. She also speaks about the abuse of boys, shifting societal tolerance levels, and the dangers of normalizing exploitation.
Sunitha shares personal experiences of threats, attacks, and backlash for challenging powerful systems, including her advocacy in the Supreme Court, her anger during critical hearings, and campaigns such as #ShameTheRapist. She reflects on her book I Am What I Am, including the chapter that begins with questioning God, and the resilience required to continue despite stigma and labels imposed by society.
The episode also sheds light on survivor rehabilitation through the Prajwala Foundation, children born in red-light areas, transition centers, education, dignity-based recovery, and long-term reintegration. From missing-child golden hour drills and funding realities to why men must speak against demand and why we must invest in boys as much as we protect girls, this conversation asks deeply uncomfortable but necessary questions.
Intense, honest, and deeply human, this episode is not meant to shock, it is meant to wake us up.
This episode stands as a powerful reminder of why child safety, women’s rights, cyber crime prevention, and social justice demand our attention on urgent notice.