07-05-2025
Ukrainian women wounded in war take part in Playboy photoshoot
Female soldiers and civilians who sustained injuries and amputations as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian war have taken part in a photoshoot for Playboy Ukraine.
Source: Ukrainska Pravda. Zhyttia (Life)
Details: The magazine has released a special edition featuring the Beauty with Scars photo project, which tells the stories of women who have survived war, injury and rehabilitation.
The issue features servicewomen Anastasiia Savka, alias Phoenix, Yana Zalevska, alias Multyk, and Kristina Sanina, as well as wounded civilians Nadiia Oksiuta and Olha Diatliuk.
The photos were taken by renowned photographer Kostiantyn Liberov.
The cover of the special issue features Anastasiia Savka.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Playboy Ukraine
The creators of the Beauty with Scars project stated that the goal of the issue was to highlight female strength and beauty that "do not vanish after injury" and to help women embrace themselves after injury.
"They look into the lens and the mirror to say: 'I am here. I am beautiful and worthy of love.' This beauty is not for comparison. It is to inspire," Playboy wrote.
The project seeks to rethink the concept of female beauty after injury and give visibility to those who have endured war.
For the photoshoot, the women wore dresses by Ukrainian designers and jewellery from the Love Is Worth Everything collection by the We Are of One Blood project.
Who are the women featured in the project
Anastasiia Savka.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Playboy Ukraine
Anastasiia Savka from Lviv is a sniper and laureate of the UP100. Power of Women award.
Before the full-scale war, she raised her son Yarema and worked at a car service salon. Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, she became a sniper with the 118th Brigade.
On 28 November 2023, Anastasiia hit a mine on the Zaporizhzhia front and lost her leg. Later, she adapted to using a prosthetic.
In summer 2024, Anastasiia became engaged to veteran Oleksii Levchenko, whom she met during rehabilitation at the Superhumans centre.
Yana Zalevska, alias Multyk, is an FPV drone operator in the 59th Separate Motorised Infantry Brigade named after Yakiv Handziuk.
Before the full-scale invasion, she lived in the city of Kherson, was on maternity leave and studied to become a massage therapist. After living under occupation for 1.5 months, she decided to join the Armed Forces.
Yana Zalevska.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Playboy Ukraine
Yana served as a military journalist, combat medic, and later retrained as a drone operator.
On 4 August 2024, Yana sustained serious injuries in a Russian drone attack – shrapnel wounded her face and body. However, she plans to return to service after rehabilitation.
Kristina Sanina.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Playboy Ukraine
Kristina Sanina is a captain in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a veteran and the mother of a young daughter.
She lost both legs and is now undergoing rehabilitation at the Tytanovi centre, where she also supports other wounded soldiers.
Kristina became the first woman in Ukraine to receive prosthetics using an osseointegration method, where a titanium implant is inserted into the bone.
Olha Diatliuk.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Playboy Ukraine
Olha Diatliuk from the city of Vinnytsia is a businesswoman, mother of two and the widow of a fallen soldier. She survived the missile strike on Vinnytsia on 14 July 2022.
Olha was injured during a Russian attack on the House of Officers and a hospital in central Vinnytsia.
She managed to escape the burning building and survived, sustaining severe burns, rib fractures and a contusion. Olha underwent long-term treatment and rehabilitation through the Unburned charity project.
In August 2023, her husband Yurii Diatliuk, a soldier of the 95th Air Assault Brigade, was killed in action in Donetsk Oblast. Since then, Olha has been supporting other women who lost their partners in the war.
Nadiia Oksiuta.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Playboy Ukraine
Nadiia Oksiuta is a videographer, content creator and mother of a young daughter.
On 18 January 2023, Nadiia was taking her daughter to kindergarten in the city of Brovary in Kyiv Oblast when they found themselves near the helicopter crash scene that killed Ukraine's Interior Ministry leadership.
Both Nadiia and her daughter suffered burns to their faces and limbs. They underwent long treatment first in Kyiv and Lviv, and later in Austria.
Nadiia later joined the Unburned charity project, where medics continue to help her improve the condition of her scars.
"We are alive – that's what matters. Those were the first words I said to my daughter Alisa two years ago after we escaped the fire," Nadiia wrote. "Many people say it was our second birthday… For me, it was a hard day. But I didn't give up, didn't fade away. This tragedy didn't break me. I accepted myself, my appearance and condition. I show Alisa by my example that everything will be alright."
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