In India’s sugarcane fields, missing a single day of work can trap an entire family in inescapable debt. For thousands of women, keeping pace with the harvest has come at a devastating physical cost: their wombs.
In Wombs of Debt, producer and director Noopur Jambheker and producer Mohammad Dawood travel to Maharashtra’s Beed district to uncover the harrowing human cost behind a global cash crop. To eliminate menstrual cycles, avoid pregnancy, and guarantee they never miss a day in the field, thousands of young women undergo surgical hysterectomies.
In Beed district, the hysterectomy rate stands at 17%—more than five times India’s national average. Over the past decade alone, more than 13,000 women in the region have undergone the procedure.
Watch the full investigation to witness their stories and see the real cost of the sugar.
Credits:
Produced by Noopur Jambhekar and Mohammad Dawood
Directed by Noopur Jambhekar
Executive Producer - Olivia Foster
Editors - Dennis Mabry, Mohammad Dawood