I stood by one thing in my life, always and that’s,” Be the change”. Women’s issues are never considered
real issues, so there is no point in discussing equality if we are still doing the same. That’s what made me
so passionate about women’s rights, women’s education, their health and hygiene, marital rights, etc.
Till the time women’s issues are considered human issues, equality is a distant dream. And for that, we
need unbiased and loud voices who are willing to do work at the grassroots. That’s the definition of a
changemaker for me and I wish to be one such.
Carrying an MBA degree from a reputed business school and having around 10 years of work experience
with me in several mid-management roles in various MNCs, I got exposure to working in different
geography and got exposed to different practices followed in various strata of society. These
experiences have helped me to take a conscious decision to leave a high-paying job and come back to
my people and become a social reformer and a changemaker.
The social sector has been my area of interest from the very beginning and I have always been involved
in some or other way, even during my corporate tenure. But the decision to get completely indulge in
social service was indeed a big one. I am happy that the love I have received from various sectors and
the accolades I got in this short tenure.
I believe that normalizing menstruation through reproductive health education and open dialogue with
menstruators and the wider community of men and boys will reduce long-term gender inequality by
enabling menstruators to advocate for their needs and reclaim agency over their bodies. I care for
periods because so many people avoid talking about them, but it’s something natural that happens all
the time. Why is something normal so heavily stigmatized?
Odisha, specifically Sundargarh district is a tribal area. That implies the level of education, lack of
awareness, and age-old practices of the indigenous people. My work with the weaver’s community for
my handloom initiative ADiBha has taken me to various parts of the state and understand the local
practices in a better way. I have witnessed similar situations during my visits to neighboring states like
Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. Even in a few areas, the situation is worse in this time and era, as well.
Many women risk getting a severe infection, at times causing death, due to poverty, ignorance, and
shame attached to their menstruation cycle. Taboos about menstruation present in many societies
impact girls’ and women’s emotional state, mentality and lifestyle, and most importantly, health.
I have been a part of several NGOs and have worked on projects related to education, women
empowerment, and environmental issues for over ten years. That leads me to start ADiBha She Vision, a
registered NGO, which works on various aspects of women empowerment along with environmental
protection. SHE for SHE !, is the motto of ADiBha She Vision. Started with a vision to empower women,
ADiBha she vision advocates equality, equal rights, equal opportunities, equal pay, and equal respect.
Currently, we are focusing on the tribal and rural segment and urban slums of Odisha as well as
neighbouring states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Uttar Pradesh. So far, touched on the lives of
around 30,000+ menstruators in person from different facets of life and got featured in several national
as well as regional media as the Pad woman and a change-maker. Of course, our reach through various
online campaigns would be much more.
Started a campaign #periods_are_normal to normalise menstruation and create awareness in rural
areas and urban slums. Period poverty is real and period equity should be real too. With this thought, I
am taking care of various aspects of period poverty like unavailability of sanitary products, lack of
education, proper hygiene, sanitation, and disposal methods. We have also started an initiative called ‘I
Bleed Red‘ to normalise periods and break the stereotypes. Also running a ‘Green Periods with
Menstrual Cup’ campaign. Slowly and steadily aiming to lead the women to menstrual cups to benefit
the environment and their betterment.
With our campaign, we are distributing menstrual hygiene kits, “treasure boxes “, to women from rural
areas and impoverished parts of society as part of our initiative. Started another unique campaign
“Sponsor a girl” on a crowdfunding platform to help more and more girls in need.
Developed a curriculum for educating girls in school and named it “Anandini” which we are taking to all
the government schools and colleges. I aim to take Anandini, which means happiness in Sanskrit, to the
all schools and make a girl feel happy about her body and periods. Recently started an awareness
campaign for differently-abled girls and the responses were so enriching and motivating. I wish to take
this initiative to other cities and rural regions as well and want to reach one lakh women and change
their lives. I name it ‘Mission one lakh’ and took up the challenge for myself. I feel health and hygiene
and women’s rights, are basic for every woman and have been ignored for a long but we need to break
the silence.
Not only women’s mental and reproductive health and hygiene, but we are also working on other
gender equality issues and women’s education and skill development. ADiBha She vision is to implement
highly impactful and innovative social initiatives to uplift vulnerable people in urban and rural slums.
Change is a journey and dialogue is the only solution to advocate change. With that thought, started
penning down my experiences, stories, rage, and many more for a larger audience on several platforms.
Womanhood is the main focus of my writing, at the same time aesthetic living, poetry, Indian
architecture, travel, art, and passion for life got their fair share in my writing and blogging. My blogs
www.theycallmenari.com always speak on various women’s issues and equality and has served as a
medium to share my voice. I write articles and columns on various prestigious forums on women’s issues
and currently working on my book as well.
When stayed out of Odisha, I felt a strong inclination toward my state’s cultural heritage, folk art, and
music, especially handloom. I feel the connection with my roots has always helped me to grow
sustainably. To get more connected to our local artisans and promote the rich textile heritage of the
Western part of Odisha, I started my handloom venture, ADiBha with the weaver’s community a few
years back. A social initiative to promote the rich textile heritage and craftsmanship of weavers from
different parts of Odisha. ADiBha aims to generate a valuable livelihood for the true artisans and
weavers’ community of Odisha, India, and make them feel proud and confident about their art, craft,
tradition, and their profession. It is effortlessly trying to ensure that Indian art and craft do not die with
time and is being transferred from generation to generation. It designs/revives/markets the most
beautiful and uniquely made hand-crafted and hand-woven sustainable fashion from parts of Odisha to
the customers and give them a space to think, understand, value, adopt and retain the art, culture, and
tradition by supporting and sustaining a life, a family, a village and a livelihood. Sustainable living is the
mantra for ADiBha.
Team WS
