Mumbai, 27th Feb 2018:
Through, Padman, Bollywood challenged the stigma around periods in India. It is interesting to note that the first major film to tackle this issuefocussed on a male entrepreneur and the movie is still going strong across all theatres in the country.The Padman Team has extended their support for Laadli - A girl child Campaign of Population First Organization through an auction of the most talked about Bicycle from Padman Movie, which Akshay Kumar rides in the movie.
The vehicle is on auction on www.bidkartz.com and the proceedings will go for the noble cause of Laadli. The last date for the auction is 20th March 2018. Population First works for health and sanitation facilities for women across the country. This also includes spreading awareness about the tabooed topic of menstrual hygiene. Their campaign spreads across 101 villages in rural India.Masses are appealed to bid and support the noble cause.
“It is shocking to note that only 12% of women use sanitary pads. Poor menstrual hygiene is responsible for heavy avoidable disease burden among women. The social norms and taboos surrounding menstruation make it a monthly painful and humiliating experience for many women. There is a need to change the social norms and challenge the taboos. The efforts of many campaigns like Laadli will receive a great boost when a people's hero like Mr. Akshay Kumar, through a mainstream film, addresses the issue. It also strengthens our advocacy initiatives with the government to improve women's access to menstrual hygiene products”, shares Dr. A.L. Sharada, Director, Population First at the onset of the release of the highly anticipated issue-based movie Padman, starring Bollywood Superstar Akshay Kumar.
About Laadli Initiative: Many women in India especially in the rural areas - have very limited knowledge about maintaining their Sexual and Reproductive Health. Issues such as accessing contraception or maintaining menstrual hygiene are not openly discussed and are indeed considered taboo subjects. Keeping this in mind, Population First – a nonprofit working concertedly to improve the condition of women in the country – instituted a comprehensive program on Adolescent Reproductive & Sexual Health (ARSH). This project is spread over 102 villages at Shahapur block in Thane District, Maharashtra. Within this program adolescent girls and boys are trained on issues related to reproductive and sexual health so that they can make informed choices and take care of their overall health.