Wearing her school uniform, Jaukala, 14, poses for a photo in the family’s chaupadi shelter, a squat shed measuring approximately one meter by two meters, in Rima village, Achham, Nepal. A tarp serves as a temporary roof to this structure, still under construction. Jaukala must sleep here while she has her period. Photo by Allison Shelley.
Women in rural Nepal sleep in huts, caves and animal sheds every month during their periods — a practice called chaupadi. Although it is outlawed, the tradition continues despite rapes, animal attacks and even death.
Written for The Picture Show: In Hindu Ritual, Nepali Women Are Banished Once A Month