MUMBAI: The challenger Indian menstrual hygiene brand Niine Sanitary Napkins has unveiled a new video campaign this Raksha Bandhan holiday, encouraging brothers to give the gift of menstrual health, hygiene and dignity to their sisters.
Niine Sanitary Napkins launched in India this year with a mission to provide wide access to a high quality, appropriately priced sanitary product to menstruating girls and women across rural and urban India, including in hard to reach areas and communities such as tribal. The video campaign released by Niine Sanitary Napkins is the latest initiative by the Niine Movement, an ambitious five-year plan aimed at raising awareness on the importance of menstrual hygiene and tackling the taboos associated with menstruation.
In the spirit of the festival, Niine Movement’s new film has been produced by the creative agency Anomalous, with the brief being to encourage siblings to talk freely about periods and break the stigma that surrounds it.
Speaking about the concept of the film, creative director Ankita Gupta said: “Raksha Bandhan is a festival that celebrates the love and devotion of a brother and his sister. With the right balance of emotions, the film brings to light that a brother’s role as his sister’s protector should not end at just shielding her from getting in trouble with their parents or the real life bad guys, but by also providing her with the basic necessities to live a healthy and dignified life. We hope this film will enable siblings to talk freely about periods and break the stigma that surrounds it."
Using the hashtag #SurakshaBandhan, the film tells boys and men to think about giving their sisters a present that matters more than money or other traditional gifts, and give the gift of good health, hygiene and dignity with a Niine.
Niine Movement founder Amar Tulsiyan says, “From no girl child missing school because of a lack of sanitary napkin access to no infections because of poor menstrual hygiene, increasing awareness of sanitary napkins will only have positive effects for women and girls. The only way we can do this is through talking to men and boys too and letting them know that by helping your daughters and sisters access sanitary napkins, you are protecting them. We need to bridge the gap and encourage both men and women to not just talk about menstrual hygiene but also encourage women to use sanitary napkins.”
Despite menstruation being an experience lived by as many as 355 million girls and women in India, approximately only 18 per cent of them currently use sanitary napkins with approximately 82 per cent of women often reverting to unhygienic and unsafe alternatives such as old cloths, rags, hay and even ash. The reasons behind this staggering statistic include decades of archaic attitudes and stigma surrounding menstruation, the lack of choice and accessibility for safe and affordable sanitary products and the limited awareness of the importance of proper menstrual hygiene management; even amongst the 18 per cent, some are still unaware of maintaining proper genital hygiene and the correct usage of the product, often overusing sanitary napkins.
With more than 90 per cent of India not having an adequate waste disposal system, a major deterrent for girls and women not to use sanitary napkins is the lack of disposal facilities. Niine will be the first brand in India to provide free disposal bags along with its product.
