What started as a deep sense of despair transformed into outrage soon.

Rimjhim Sinha, a 29-year-old independent researcher, couldn’t sleep at night after she heard about the horrific rape and murder of the trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Calcutta. About 72 hours later, she had gathered enough determination to inspire a movement that has ignited Bengal, from the hills to the plains.

“The principal of RG Kar gave a statement that the woman should not have been there in the seminar room so late at night. But she was there taking rest after the whole hectic night duty that she was assigned to!” Sinha told The Telegraph Online.

“This statement was like a blow to my mind. I decided to take a call because this statement has been made, time and again. Society and a lot of people have always tried to blame women,” she adds.

Sinha wanted to organise a protest that would make it clear women have the right to feel safe , whether it is broad daylight or late night. She gave the call to reclaim the city for women, challenging the fear and stigma that prevents women from going out. This idea proliferated into what is now known as the ‘Reclaim the Night’ protest, a movement taking place across Calcutta and the districts at the midnight hour of Independence Day.

Facebook/RimjhimSinha

“I thought that in the month of August when we celebrate our independence day, I would want to celebrate the night with my independence: The independence of a woman,” Sinha said.

Sinha, a student of sociology from Presidency University, had planned the protest as a small gathering. At last count, it will cover 45 places across Calcutta,with hundreds expected to join.

“Now I am receiving calls every single second. What motivates me is that I have people of all age groups have reached out to me, sone even 60, 70 years old. All of them sound so happy and they wish to see constructive change in the system that has been running for so many years and has failed to give us the security that we deserve,” Sinha said.

The key theme of the movement- "Swadhinotar Modhyoraatey, Nari Swadhinotar Jonyo" (At the midnight hour of Independence, for women’s liberation)- has been widely shared on social media, capturing the essence of Sinha’s idea.