I am a native of Kaski District, near the Annapurna mountain range in Nepal. I grew up in a large family with my parents and six siblings. I got married at the early age of 14 when I was still studying in grade five. I had four happy years with my husband until he began drinking heavily. His drunken rages were accompanied by physical abuse. I tried to withstand the abuse, hoping it would subside. Unfortunately, it did not. As the abuse increased, I left him and moved back in with my parents.
My family was not well-off. Adding another mouth to feed was a burden for them. Because I was young and could take care of myself, I moved to the lakeside city of Pokhara, where I started working as a dishwasher for a local restaurant. After some time, I noticed that co-workers with the same pay as me had significantly better lifestyles. They wore expensive clothes and had extra money to spend, while I was barely making ends meet. When I asked them how they were able to live so well, they said they were all involved in sex work. Enticed by the glamour of extra money, I soon got involved in sex work too.
A few months later, my husband returned, wanting to mend our relationship and start fresh. He said he had given up his old ways, and I accepted his request. We moved in together and started working as daily wage laborers. I stopped the sex work.