Growing up in a remote tribal hamlet, Rupa Hembrom used to be terrified of the wild boars that roamed nearby.
Now her biggest fear is the Maoist guerrillas who prowl the jungles of India's 'Red Corridor'.
The left-wing extremists have been fighting to overthrow the government for decades, but the conflict has taken on a new intensity since right-wing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's election last year.
A rise in abductions of civilians and execution-style killings mean they are now regarded as India's number one security challenge, striking fear into security forces and locals alike.
While operating mainly underground, the Maoists often descend on villages to demand everything from protection money to livestock as well as enticing young men and women to join their ranks.
"Just looking at them makes me so scared. They have machine-guns and they look so powerful," said 24-year-old Hembrom as she narrated her encounters with heavily-armed Maoist patrols in Jharkhand state.
Hembrom's village of lush paddy fields and sparkling streams falls in the so-called 'Red Corridor' straddling swathes of central and eastern India.
Hembrom belongs to one of India's many indigenous tribes collectively known as Adivasis, who live in abject poverty ─ fertile recruiting ground for the Maoists, also known as Naxals, hiding out in surrounding areas.
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