The social documentary network ZEKE has announced the winners of its 2026 awards, highlighting powerful stories of systemic change and human resilience. Ginevra Bonina received the award for systemic change for her project 'Out for Blood', which sheds light on period poverty in India and the women and girls fighting to reclaim their bodies 'as a site of struggle, resistance and liberation'. Ebrahim Alipoor won the award for documentary photography for his long-term project 'Bullets Have No Borders', showcasing the lives of border porters who carry goods across the treacherous Iran-Iraq mountains to support their families.
Period Poverty in India
Bonina's project captures the harsh realities faced by women and girls in India due to menstruation taboos and lack of access to sanitary products. In the village of Baghori, a woman from the Muslim community walks through alleys, her life deeply conditioned by stigma despite a stable economic background. The project includes a still life of two pomegranates, symbols of fertility, held by male hands, and images of farmers working in cotton plantations in Telangana, where patriarchal structures remain strong.
Dr Kritika Singh Chauhan, a volunteer with the Humjoli Foundation, is pictured after a menstrual education session at a police academy in Maharashtra. A group of women reflected in water highlights that only 45% of girls are aware of menstruation before menarche, and 50% still rely on cloths, risking infections. A 35-year-old woman lies in a kurma ghar, an isolation hut during menstruation, lacking basic services and exposing women to abuse and fatal accidents. Hurera Khanam, a menstrual educator, works door-to-door in Adilabad district, facing challenges of diverse religions and restrictions.
Women produce sanitary pads in a self-help group centre, while a young goat is destined for sacrifice to the goddess Kamakhya, a ritual linked to fertility. A teenage girl attends a menstrual health session organised by the Pinkishe Foundation, where girls normalise menstruation in a safe space.
Border Porters in Iran and Iraq
Alipoor's project documents the perilous lives of Koolbars, porters who transport goods across the Iran-Iraq mountains. Some Koolbars cover their faces with masks to avoid recognition, as many are educated people forced into this work. The village of Hawraman Takht is a centre for smuggled goods, where most residents are Koolbars. A 22-year-old man died in an avalanche, a common cause of death among porters. Loads include cigarettes, home appliances, and clothing for large business owners.
A Koolbar eats snow to quench thirst, unable to carry water due to heavy loads. Families live with constant apprehension, with dozens of brides becoming widows each year. Susan, 18, voluntarily teaches Kurdish language, which is prohibited in Iranian schools. Ahmad, 41, lost all fingers to frostbite after getting lost in the mountains, unable to access hospital due to poverty. Khaled, 32, lost both eyes after being shot by border police, leaving him with two children.
