In Interviews With 122 Rapists, Student Pursues Not-So-Simple Question: Why?

Five years ago, on Dec. 16, 2012, Jyoti Singh, a 23-year-old physiotherapist intern living in New Delhi, was headed home after watching the movie Life of Pi with a male friend. They got on a bus. Six men were on board, including the driver.

In the moving bus, all six of the men assaulted the couple. Singh was gang-raped and her friend beaten severely.

Singh sustained severe damage to her abdomen and intestines. She was airlifted to a hospital in Singapore for treatment but died from her injuries nearly two weeks later.

Five of the rapists were convicted and sentenced to death. The youngest, who was a minor, was sent to a reform facility for three years and later released. One of the rapists died in prison under mysterious circumstances.

For Madhumita Pandey, who was then completing her master's