Do you know Aditi Gupta? A Menstrual Educator and inspiration to Indian Women…!
She is an inspiration...!
NewsBharati 27-May-2022 11:30:52 AM
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Whenever we hear the word Menstruation or Periods what is our first expression? It is mostly “Hush Hush”. We try to hide it, use code words like ‘Happy Birthday’ or ‘P’ or ‘Those days’ or even commonly used ‘menses’. But we try not to talk about it openly right? And then there come myths around this subject as well. But there is a girl named “Aditi Gupta” who is not only creating awareness regarding this subject but has created a business around it - ‘Menstrupedia’ and helping young girls to understand their bodies and have a positive lookout towards it.
Talk about any Indian household. Can these young girls talk to their brothers, or fathers about menstruation? When their body is going through a transition period and puberty is coming in, it is a difficult time altogether for these young girls. Going through this new phase every month, to understand the changes in their body and emotions, can be extremely challenging. And That’s why Aditi wanted to do something which can help these girls in this difficult phase. Forbes 30 under 30 Aditi, is changing the scenario around periods through her company ‘Mentrupedia’ she is a co-founder of Menstrupedia and a menstruation educator.
Till now Aditi has educated more than 50000 girls about menstruation, trained 10000+ educators in the same subject, and impacted more than 13 million lives worldwide. She is creating awareness about the subject, as she faced a lot of issues while she was young.
In an interview, Aditi mentioned, “She got her periods for the first time when she was 12 years old. And it was a horrible nightmare for her as she was forbidden to enter a temple as well as she had to use rags instead of pads which gave her horrible rashes.” That's when she realized the shame and impurity that is associated with menstruation and somehow she knew she had to change this scenario.
She says, “There are many Aditis like me in every household, who had to face stereotypical situations and myths around menstruation.” But she came forward and decided to change this scenario for the better tomorrow.
She used different and creative mediums to spread awareness about periods. She created comics named “Mentrupedia” through which she educates young girls about periods and things around the same. Over 10000 schools in India use this comic book as a curriculum to educate girls regarding menstruation. Myth breaking and Period Positivity are two major pillars of her strategy, she shared.
Aditi did a fantastic campaign with one of the famous sanitary napkin companies in India called “Touch the pickle” because in India it is a myth that is believed by many households that if a girl touches a pickle while menstruating, the pickle may get spoiled. And this campaign was a hit.
“We raise girls with shame and boys with ignorance. Unfortunately, we exclude fathers and brothers from these conversations. When we grow up, we feel males are insensitive towards our needs, without even realizing that he has been brought up like that. It happens in every household. I feel we are doing a disservice to both genders by not speaking about these subjects. Even if menstruation doesn’t affect men directly, men who really care about the women in their lives do get impacted. Hence, it’s always a good idea to make them your allies in this journey,” she explains. She says, in one of her interviews.
Mentrupedia not only have a comic book for girls, but they have a comic book for boys in the age of puberty as well named “Gulu”. Menstrupedia tied up with government bodies and schools as well as sanitary napkin companies to spread awareness about menstruation. Aditi in her Ted Talk mentioned her journey, myths, and ignorance that she faced in her childhood regarding periods and societal beliefs she saw.
Aditi’s journey is inspiring and she is doing a phenomenal job in girls' health and education. Mentsrupedia can save a lot of girls from mental health issues caused because of society's beliefs regarding menstruation.
We need more Aditis like her, who can spread the Awareness and make this world a better place to live, especially for girls.
Niharika Pole Sarwate
Niharika Pole Sarwate became a journalist to voice her opinion for the right. She has been working as journalist for more than five years now. Art, Culture, Youth, Nation are her areas of work. Social media has strong power and she is on a mission to utilise it for the betterment of the society.