Period Talk: breaking menstruation taboos in India via the radio
The Better India (2018)
SDG: Goal 3 – Good Health and Well-being
Technology: Radio
What was the challenge?
Within Indian society there exist a taboo around menstruation (Practical Action, 2018). No one talks about menstruation, but society perceives it as something negative. Especially in the slums, young women feel ashamed when they are on their period and consequently try to hide themselves. Women seem to follow unhygienic practices which lead to diseases (Acharya, 2016). Approaching young women in conservative communities to talk about menstruation hygiene might be difficult because of the taboo. How to educate young women on menstruation hygiene and improve their health is a challenge which the NGO Practical Action tries to solve.
How innovators responded
Practical Action created a radio-show titled Sunolo Sukhi, which means “Sisters, let’s listen” to educate young women about menstruation. Hygiene experts are present in the show and answer the questions provided by young women who call in with their mobile phones. Many young women have the opportunity to listen to the radio and educate themselves while not putting themselves in the uncomfortable position of asking their questions face-to-face to with family member or friend. The answers in this show dispel myths and the taboo around menstruation. To further increase the reach of the show, Practical Action established sister clubs for group discussion and created film screenings, audio podcasts, and braille books.
Young women listening to Sunolo Sukhi (Stevens, 2018).
Impact
The radio show started to air in 2016 in Odisha where it answered on average eight calls per episode (Practical Action, 2016). In 2018, the programme had reached more than 8000 young women, broadcasted 300 hours and established 80 sister discussion clubs (The Better India, 2018). After the show first aired in the slums the show has expanded also to commercial radio stations (Practical Action, 2018). Due to the radio show, young girls seem to better informed about proper hygiene practices and start to feel more comfortable discussing the topic of menstruation.
Related Movie:
A Unique Radio Show – Sunolo Sakhi
Talking about menstruation, empowering women, and educating girls… Sunolo Sakhi is a unique radio show which does all this and more! Practical Action
Help TheBetterIndia repackage the entire conversation around periods by changing how we ‘pack’ our pads! You can grab a cool pouch to carry pads in style here: http://bit.ly/donthideitperiod. And the best part is that all proceeds from the sales will be used to set up a sanitary pad factory in Ajmer, Rajasthan, by TheBetterIndia and Aakar Innovations. #FreeThePeriod
Geplaatst door TheBetterIndia op Vrijdag 16 februari 2018
References
Acharya, A. (2016, May 28). ‘Sunolo Sakhi’, lets do the #PeriodTalk. DNA India, Retrieved from http://www.dnaindia.com/locality/bhubaneswar/‘sunolo-sakhi’-lets-do-periodtalk-94592
Practical Action (2016). Sunola Sakhi | First ever Radio show on Menstruation | Practical Answers. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKZMPMqoQKI&feature=youtu.be&list=PLHvu7XCqeua5pAmGCLRHjN6bvNb8u2-Xv
Practical Action (2018). Sunolo Sakhi : radio enabling period talk. Retrieved from https://practicalaction.org/sunolo-sakhi
Stevens, L. (2018, March 8). ‘Woman’s hour’ in Odisha. Retrieved from https://practicalaction.org/blog/news/campaigns/womans-hour-in-odisha/
The Better India (2018, February 16). A Unique Radio Show – Sunolo Sakhi. Retrieved from https://web.facebook.com/thebetterindia/videos/10156148148279594/UzpfSTIzODY4OTIyNjUyMjkzNDo2NDUwMTI4MjU4OTA1NzA/?_rdc=1&_rdr
