New Delhi: It was a rousing welcoming for Sneha and Suman at Delhi International Airport early on Sunday (March 3). Sneha and Suman, featured in India-based documentary ‘Period. End of Sentence’, which won the Oscars 2019 for Best Documentary Short Subject. Flashing cameras, paparazzi and loud cheers were a few unusual sites that Sneha and Suman witnessed as soon as they exited from the airport. Talking to ANI, Sneha said: “Whatever was shown in the documentary was a reality. Nothing was fake. Neither we are actors, nor were we acting. Everything was real.”
On being asked how she feels after receiving the award, Sneha said: “I am very happy. I just want to say that if I can do it, then any girl in the world can do it.”
‘Period. End of Sentence’, which tackles the stigma of menstruation in the country, created history at the 91st Academy Awards after winning in the best documentary short.
This was not a day’s struggle, the award bears testimony to 20 years of hard labour, Suman told ANI.
“Menstruation is not a disease, it’s a procedure. If we talk about this openly then we can make lives of women safe in the coming days”, Suman said.
We have received success today on a topic on which we can’t even talk about in public. Periods, which are looked down upon in the society, we have been able to work towards raising awareness about it. Our aim is to make people accept cleanliness during periods. We want all women to understand this and take care of their hygiene. If our voice reaches to a single girl, then we feel we have received success, Suman added.
The 26-minute short documentary, co-produced by Guneet Monga and directed by 25-year-old Rayka Zehtabchi, follows a group of women in Hapur, India who lead a quiet revolution as they fight against the stigma of menstruation that is deeply rooted in society.
For generations, the women of the village did not have access to sanitary pads, which lead to health issues among them. When a sanitary pad is installed in their village, the women learn to manufacture and market their own pads, naming it ‘FLY.’
The film was nominated along with ‘Black Sheep,’ ‘End Game,’ ‘Lifeboat’ and ‘A Night At The Garden’ in the category.
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swachh India campaign lends support to the Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). Helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, the campaign aims to spread awareness about hygiene and sanitation, the importance of building toilets and making India open defecation free (ODF) by October 2019, a target set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, when he launched Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in 2014. Over the years, the campaign has widened its scope to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and menstrual hygiene. The campaign has also focused extensively on marine pollution, clean Ganga Project and rejuvenation of Yamuna, two of India’s major river bodies.
