In the district of Faridpur, a rural area near the capital Dhaka, these outcast women were forced to live and work in a brothel.

A sex worker relaxes as she waits for her next customer.

This little girl takes a brief moment to forget the harsh realities of the brothel. It is not rare to find girls between 7-13 years old involved in prostitution.

With the world economy taking a downturn, life in these slums has also taken a turn for the worst.
Prices go up while salaries stay the same, which means customers spend less. Condoms have
become luxuries. Prostitutes wait for clients at the entrance of the three floor brothel.

Rojina used to be a textile worker, until she had an affair with a family member. In their rage, she was nearly stabbed to death and forced out of her family. She had little choice but to turn to a life as a sex worker to make a living. To this day, she sends part of her meagre earnings to her family, in hope of being forgiven.

A sex work puts on make-up in her room and place of work. As younger girls dominate the sex worker industry in Bangladesh, maintaining their youthful looks are the only guarantee older women keep earning their living and having a stable clientele.

Bristi was born at the brothel 15 years ago to a mother who worked there. During her life, her grandmother took care of her and tried very hard to help Bristi avoid her mother's mistakes. Now, after her family faced economic difficulties, she too recently became a sex worker.

"If I could go to another place, marry someone who would knows nothing about my past, maybe I could escape this shame that I feel" says Bristi (15 years old at the time of this photograph was taken)

A sex worker fixes her hair and gets ready before clients show up.

24 year old Asha'€™s first contact with the sex industry was when she was 9, after she was badly beaten and raped. While interviewed, she cried in sorrow as she recalled recent years.

The small room from which Asha earns between 50 and 150 takas ($0.50-$2.00) per service.

Prostitutes gather water inside of the brothel. Earning barely enough to put food on the table, their living quarters can hardly be called a home.

After being raped, Lima (15) was forced to work in the prostitution industry. She has 7 to 12 clients each day and charges 1.3 to 2.5 USD per service.

Lima (15 at the time of tis photo) feels imprisoned in an eternal nightmare where each day is as meaningless and hard as the previous day. When she was asked what she wanted to be as an adult or later on in the future, she replied: "I wish that I could get married so I could leave this life. But I know my dreams will never come true. That'€™s why I prefer not to think about the future anymore."

A sex worker gets ready at the entrance to her bedroom.

Sex workers and clients negotiates the fee. With more and more customers unable to afford their services, inviting them has become even tougher.

Julie's father was handicapped after a traffic accident. Her father was the sole bread winner. Her family hasn't been the same since then. She agreed to work in the brothel to help out. She never expected to experience the hell she goes through there.

As clients demand younger girls, old sex workers become madames; the organizers of the brothel. This completes the never-ending, vicious cycle of the brothel.

Society has forced these women to live in darkness. For them there is no break in their society. They are used and hated in equal measure. Their services are demanded, while they are simultaneously pushed to the margins of society.