Every woman has an experience of street harassment. Tarang Chawla wants to change that.

Tarang Chawla, a writer, academic and activist, has seen the devastation that gender-based violence causes.

In 2015, his sister Nikita Chawla was murdered by her husband. And in the years since, Tarang has worked tirelessly to advocate not only on his late sister's behalf, but to highlight how violence against women is a national epidemic in Australia that needs more attention. 

When it comes to domestic violence, at the root of it is a lack of respect towards women. 

Tarang explained to Mamamia that he wants to encourage the men in our lives to be better allies. Because although anyone can be a perpetrator or a victim of sexual harassment, it disproportionately affects women - particularly women of colour and minority groups. 

"We often see street harassment happen, but uncomfortably look away," Tarang said.

As a society, many feel the urge to speak up on issues like these, but stay cautiously silent. Or they want to do something about it, but don't know what. But the fear with this mindset is that it will prompt people to start thinking harassment and abuse is "not a big deal".

Watch: Let's Act Together Against Street Harassment. Post continues below.

Tarang has witnessed street harassment on many occasions in his life. And each time, he has found himself in a safe position to stand up and make a difference. 

For so long, the onus has been on women to call out the bad behaviour they fall victim to. Now, it's time for everyone to take a stand.

"Awareness is important. But action crucial," Tarang said, who has recently been announced as an ambassador for 'Stand Up Against Street Harassment', a new global initiative established in partnership with L'Oréal Paris Australia and Plan International.

So how do we start the conversation?

As someone who has done strong advocacy work in this space, Tarang told Mamamia it's key not to demonise any group, including men, but to educate and inform.

"It's really about getting the whole community involved in a conversation - because no one wants to feel unsafe. Start the talk with your friendship circle and then extend it out. Then, start to examine your own behaviours. It's important for men to learn how they can intervene responsibly and safely when they see harassment. Some men immediately think they're no longer allowed to 'flirt' - but it's about recognising what the boundaries of consensual behaviour are."

In Australia alone, 78 per cent of women have experienced sexual harassment. Globally, sexual harassment in public spaces is the number one issue faced by women and girls around the world. They are sobering statistics to read. 

But every woman has a story. An experience of being harassed while walking down the street, gripping car keys in their fingers - ready to defend themselves if faced with a threat.

The difficulty for some is that they struggle to clearly identify this sort of behaviour. But it essentially comes down to this: whenever it's unwanted verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature - it's harassment.  

"Can you imagine walking into a room full of women and having most of them put their hand up to say they've experienced harassment? How alarming and scary is that," Tarang said.

Tarang comes from the perspective of someone who has lost his sister to murder - the most extreme kind of gender-based violence on the spectrum. 

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Of course, not all perpetrators of street harassment go on to commit horrific acts of domestic violence. But there is an important and tangible link between the two - and bringing people to account has the power to stop the potential escalation.  

"What I want to see is more men being involved in conversations before it escalates," Tarang said.  

"Harassment is just one of countless forms of abuse perpetrated predominantly by men against women. Violence, rape, coercive control and sexual assault exist on the spectrum. So if we as a society don't openly speak out against harassment and let that behaviour go unchecked, it has the propensity to get worse. And that can lead to lifelong devastating consequences."

We've been reminded recently why the need to keep having this conversation is crucial, amid the rise of misogynistic personalities, like Andrew Tate, online.

"There's a reason why these figures find such a following among young men. Because many young men feel like they don't have role models that resonate with them."

And that's something Tarang hopes to continue addressing. 

As he said: "We need to provide better examples of masculinity."

It should be cool to call out your mate's bad behaviour towards women. It should be considered strong to be an ally. And it should be thought of as powerful to find the courage to say something when you witness poor behaviour.

Tarang feels proud to be working alongside some incredible people in this space.  

"It's reassuring to see people like [fellow ambassadors] Jessica Mauboy, Maria Thattil and Cody Simpson standing up. These people each have great power - and it's particularly great to see Cody, as the work shouldn't just be on the shoulders of women. We need men to step up too," Tarang explained.

"It means a lot to me as someone who has a sibling whose life was stolen from tremendous violence. Because together, and with action, we are the solution."

To learn more about the 'Stand Up Against Street Harassment' initiative or to take the training, you can visit the website here. The initiative provides training in the 5Ds - Distract, Delegate, Document, Direct and Delay - to support bystanders to safely stand up to street harassment when they see it. 

For more from Tarang, you can follow him on Instagram here.

If this has raised any issues for you, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, please call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service. 

Feature Image: Supplied/Twitter @tarang_chawla.