From having no clue about the menstrual cycle to setting up a ‘sanitary pad depot’ for other women and girls, Kalpana Verma has set an example in her village about normalising period talk and related issues. The resident of Mirtala village in Mahoba district of Uttar Pradesh tells us about her journey, in her own words:
I clearly remember I was in 10th standard and had my board examination the next day. But late at night, I felt a sharp and stabbing pain in my stomach. After a while, I had blood coming out. I was petrified and completely confused. Being the eldest daughter in the family, I had no knowledge about the menstrual period. I knew nothing about what to do in situations like this. Unable to fathom what to do, I hesitatingly ran to my mother. She handed me old cloth and tried her best to explain what I should be doing. But the bleeding did not stop and I kept crying through the night. The next day, I did badly in my exam. The bleeding continued for the next five days and I remained in a confused state. I did not ask my mother either about the bleeding or the cramps that I suffered (Photo by Kalpana Verma)
I live in a small village where even married women do not openly talk about menstrual periods. They do not even keep sanitary pads at home since it is normally associated with something that one is supposed to be ashamed of. My village also did not have a single shop selling sanitary pads. In any case, most women do not visit markets. Over time, I understood more about menstruation. I decided to make pads at home so that at least my younger sister did not have to suffer the way I did.
I became involved in a local NGO which used to conduct sessions in my school. Although my father was against me attending such sessions, I made random excuses and made it a point to attend them. When the Covid-19 pandemic was coming to an end, the NGO held discussions on women’s health and hygiene. The conversations led to us discussing how we can help ourselves by making use of easily available stuff during menstrual periods. I returned home to discuss it further with my mother and sister. We began by stitching pads using clean pieces of cotton cloth and stored them for common use in a tin box in my room. (Representational photo courtesy Shutterstock)
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The box also had bars of soap, some booklets that had information on periods and a register. The register was to maintain the names of the women who take pads from the box. The box became a pad depot in no time. The word spread and now, women come in groups to collect sanitary pads. Some come alone at night. We give two packets of the pads for Rs 40. The soap is given for free.
For about a year, I did not tell my father about the depot. When he would ask about the box, I used to say that I keep my books in it. But he eventually understood when women would come to the depot late at night. He did not like it. But there is no concept of father-daughter conversations in my village. My mother helped immensely to impress this issue upon my father. Now, he does not make faces when women visit to get the pads. There have been occasions when he has handed them over to the women while we are absent.
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This year, I started stocking regular pads bought from the market after the NGO collaborated with a shopkeeper in Mahoba city to supply us with pads at a subsidised rate when bought in bulk. The shop is some 12 km away. But periods are our issue and I will happily walk the distance to get them. Now women discuss menstruation and related problems like cramps with their daughters. Even young girls come to me and share their issues. I feel proud that there is a dialogue now. My initiative is small. Only a few dozen sanitary pads are sold every month. The money I make is just good enough to pay for my own requirement of pads. But it has been a giant step for me. I hope more and more girls start such depots. It would help women, particularly in rural areas, to negotiate what is a pure biological process (Photo by Kalpana Verma)
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The lead image at the top shows Kalpana Verma with the tin box containing sanitary pads (Photo courtesy Kalpana Verma)
Jyoti Thakur is an independent journalist based out of Delhi. She covers gender, environment and social justice. She is a Rural Media Fellow 2022 at Youth Hub, Village Square.