Mumbai: March 13, 2023 – Studies show, 1 in 5 girls drop out of school every year in India due to lack of period education. Studies have also found that 7 in 10 mothers don’t know the biology of periods and consider it ‘dirty or impure’, often passing this to their daughters. With mothers being the first teachers of their children, it is important they educate their young daughters correctly about the natural process of periods and about using the right products.
To educate these mothers and to break the cycle of ignorance and misinformation, feminine-care brand Whisper, from the house of Procter & Gamble, has launched the fourth edition of its #KeepGirlsInSchool campaign. In a new film, titled, The Missing Chapter conceptualized by Leo Burnett, Whisper is reaching out to mothers, teaching them the biology of periods so that they, in turn, can educate their daughters on menstrual hygiene and using sanitary pads during their monthly cycles. In most parts of India, mothers themselves are unaware about the biological workings of their body during menstruation leaving 71% of the girls in India not aware about periods when they first get them. As a result, young girls have limited knowledge on how to manage their periods and prefer to stay home during period days every month.
Whisper launched its #KeepGirlsInSchool Campaign in the year 2020 to shed light on ‘Missing Girls’ from Indian schools every month. They continued with the thought-provoking campaign in 2021 highlighting, ‘Missing Future’ of girls who dropped out of schools during their periods. Most importantly, over the last 30 years, Whisper has been running its school and community programs where it has educated and given free pads to over 10 crore girls and to mothers.
In 2022, the brand brought to notice the ‘The Missing Chapter’ on periods in the school syllabi highlighting an important question – how long a Missing Chapter can be kept away from the Indian education system. Whisper also stepped up to its commitment of bringing period education to millions of girls who lost access to this education through the pandemic by stepping up the on-ground practice of building awareness about menstrual hygiene and period education.
Over the years, Whisper has provided free pads and menstrual education to more than 10 crore daughters and mothers. With every Whisper Ultra pack bought during this campaign, you can help support one girl’s free pads and menstrual education, helping keep her in school.
“For almost three decades now, we, at Whisper, have been dedicated towards period education, spreading awareness about menstrual hygiene, and distributing sanitary pads to girls across India. This year, we’re aiming to educate mothers, the girl’s first teacher, about the biology of periods and right sanitary products. Something that she was never taught herself. Our aim is to empower young girls to achieve their dreams by completing their school education without any gaps and to stop them from dropping out of school because of a biological process as natural as periods. Our consumers can make a huge difference in helping us bridge this gap. For every pack of Whisper Ultra sanitary napkins bought, we will give menstrual education and free pads to one girl helping keep her in school,” said Girish Kalyanaraman – Vice President and Category Leader, Feminine Care, Procter & Gamble India.
Sharing her support for the movement, actor Mrunal Thakur, said, “Menstrual education is so important to teach girls about their periods, their body and how to manage it. Whisper is doing an incredible job with its #KeepGirlsInSchool Campaign, and I am proud to be associated with it. I have been using their products from the start and still remember the session I had in school where the Whisper team taught us about periods. That helped me and my friends be ready for this change and embrace it as a natural biological process. It’s time to have open conversations about periods and create a world where menstruation is not a barrier to girls’ education and well-being. By keeping girls in school, we are not only investing in their individual growth and success but also in the progress and prosperity of our society.”
The KGIS campaign addresses all girls in India, breaking myths about periods being ‘dirty’ or an ‘illness’ by educating girls about the science of the female reproductive system and how the usage of sanitary products can help them go to school.
