New Delhi, Jul 20: Monica Singh's face lights up when she talks her dream to study fashion marketing at Parson's New School of Design in New York. The 28-year-old's flair for style is evident in how she is dressed — a smart skirt paired with a fitted black blouse, and a scarf stylishly draped around her throat.
What the scarf hides are the bandages from a neck surgery, the 43rd reconstruction procedure she has undergone since a horrific acid attack nine years ago. A bulb of acid five hired goons threw on her in Lucknow to avenge a rejected marriage proposal had severely burnt her torso and face.
But Monica is an irrepressible optimist, and she chooses not to play the victim. Despite the long recovery, the many setbacks and the trauma, she is full of life. Her energies are focused on her impending postgraduate course at Parson's and ways to raise the funds for it. She is looking to get crowdfunding for her studies on the web.
She has posted a YouTube video which tells her story on crowdfunding sites such as indiegogo and put out a plea for grants on the makelovenotscars.org, a site for acid-attack survivors.
"I can go only if I manage to raise the money for my studies," Monica says. She is $50,000 short of realizing her dream. Her pillar of support is her brother Nikhil Singh (31), currently the only earning member in her family.
Monica was in the first year of her undergraduate course in apparel design at the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) when she was attacked in her home town. After an entire year in hospital in Lucknow and spending close to Rs 50 lakh on reconstruction surgeries, she resolutely returned to Delhi to resume her studies.
The courts have given her little relief. Two of Monica's attackers are in custody but three are out on bail. Under the new law passed last April, Monica would have been entitled to compensation, both from the state government as well as the accused. Unfortunately, the assault on Monica pre-dates this so she does not stand to benefit from the law.
Her case is still being heard in the high court now but she has no hopes of justice. "My father paid for my medical expenses. I had to submit my bills again and again and we hoped the court would order compensation but that never happened. I cannot beg or plead or act the victim any more. For me and my family, my career was the most important thing. I can go for a hearing once more if I was assured justice but not more than that," she says.
Monica got several internships with well-known brands and fashion magazines after her graduation but keeping a job was difficult. "People knew that I tire easily because my physical condition. But I really did my best. I breathe fashion. That's how much I love my job," she says.
Monica's father, a banker, backed her all the way. But he passed away recently, and now the family is no position to fund her studies in New York. But she refuses to give up her hopes of studying at Parson's. Her passion, she says, is unshakeable. "When Alexander McQueen passed away, I was in mourning for five days. I cried. They are gods to me," she says.
Monica says she designs western couture and loves drama and flamboyance in her works. Her collection for her college show was called 'Vegas on the Ramp', and inspired by casinos and roulettes.
The designer says she is used to running into people who have problems with her appearance but she doesn't let it upset her. "For me beauty is above appearances, it's in your intelligence and in art," she says. She is the first in her family to study abroad.
Monica is a first in many ways. She is the first to have extensive plastic surgery for her face in Lucknow. "The surgeon tried a new kind of facial graft on her for the first time — he used skin from her back to do it. My sister is amazing. Doctors told me several times that she managed to recover only because of her grit," says Nikhil.
She does not tip toe around the subject of her face and the reconstruction procedures. "The face is your identity. You can either retain the old one or get a new one. I decided to get a new face," she says.
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