Taboo still triumphs over the truth. A basic health kiosk became “Ashleel” simply because he created space for women to talk about their uterus and periods.
Sexual and reproductive health is still dangerously combined. Many assumed that the kiosk was about sex, infertility or contraception, exposing a deep lack or awareness.
The spaces led by women remain vulnerable. The mocking tone, inappropriate questions and body language were not curiosity: they were attempts to undermine and intimidate.
And yet we introduce ourselves. Daily.
Because this was just a kiosk, it was a statement: Menstrual health is not a parallel problem. It is essential for performance, dignity and equity in sport.
The impact was impossible to ignore. The players, parents, officials and partners praised the initiative. Caused dialogue. He made people stop, reflect, and most importantly, made girls feel soar.
The media, the influencers and radio stations throughout Bihar covered the initiative. DD news He executed a special segment, completely not paid.
And then the cherry came on the top: a visit of Hari Ranjan RaoSecretary, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, who said:
“We are proud of the work you are doing. Menstrual health literacy in sports is not only important, it is essential not only to our athletes but to the entire sports ecosystem.”
How do we get here?
This was unique. The kiosk was the culmination of a three -year association between Simply Sport and BSSA, headed by the Director General and CEO or the authority of the sports state of Bihar, Raventran Shankaran, focused on normalizing menstrual health conversations.
From 2023 to 2025, the Simply periods initiative is scale of local workshops in Patna, Siwan and Darbhanga to:
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20 athlete workshops and 5 coach workshops
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10+ Covered District
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724+ affected individualsMainly of unattended regions
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Baseline data showed that 70% of athletes experienced period painand 60% lacked hemoglobin consciousness
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Pilot programs on nutrition, monitoring of PMS and impact on performance
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Launch o Simply berry -A menstrual monitoring tool based on WhatsApp
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Technological integration, product demonstrations and data collection ready for policies
What follows?
The kiosk is just the beginning.
The next step is the release of a menstrual health literacy report, based on more than 800 responses from athlete, coaches and staff surveys. He will sacrifice ideas based on data and policy recommendations for the states throughout India.
BSSA and Simply Sport are committed to keeping this conversation alive, so no athlete is forced to silence, discomfort or shame due to the period.
This was never just about pads.
It was power, participation and performance.
And we are just starting.
About the author:
Aditi Mutatkar, our Chief of Athlete and Women’s Initiatives, is a former Badminton International Player and five times national champion in age groups. He represented India on the global stage, winning a silver medal at the mixed team event at the Commonwealth Games and achieving a world ranking of his number 27 in 2008. After his sports career, he followed a master’s degree in Public Administration at the University of Texas and a postgraduate certificate in public policies of the Takshashila institution.