14 years ago, Mukhtar Mai was brutally gang-raped and was paraded naked in the public on the orders of her tribe's elders after her brother had insulted a rival clan.

14 years on, the same woman displayed exceptional courage and walked a fashion runway in Pakistan on Tuesday.

AP

In a bid to help other women who share a similar fate as hers, Mukhtar Mai walked the ramp in Karachi that saw in attendance the country's most fashionable elite.

"If one step I take, if that helps even one woman, I would be very happy to do that," she said.

After the tragedy, Mai didn't choose the alternative fate that most women chose in such grave situations. Instead, she decided to fight and took the same to the Supreme Court to have her attackers jailed.

AP

All fourteen attackers were put on trial and six among them were awarded death sentence. But later, all of them were let out on bail.

But Mai continued her fight and became an international advocate for women's rights. She even opened a charity to provide shelter to women and a girl's school in her village, Meerwala.

On Tuesday, a shy but resolute Mai appeared before the who's who of the industry in a light-green embroidered ensemble.

AP

"I want to be the voice of those women who face circumstances similar to what I did. My message for my sisters is that we aren't weak. We have a heart and a brain, we also think. I ask my sisters to not lose hope in the face of injustice, as we will get justice one day for sure," she said.