Pad and Prejudice aims to normalize conversation around all things related to menstruation, menstrual health, and menstruating bodies, and challenge the stigma that surrounds menstruation. The work is rooted strongly in the belief that it is the right of every person who menstruates to fully understand the inner workings of their body and their unique menstrual cycle, and that to possess such knowledge leads to embodied empowerment. Achieving this level of self-knowledge through practiced body literacy enables individuals to better make informed choices, and better advocate for their menstrual, reproductive, and sexual health.

Through interactive sessions in schools, workplaces, and communities, Pad and Prejudice primarily focuses on providing information to people who menstruate and their communities about the menstrual cycle, menstrual health, and menstrual products. 

Such workshops focus on:

• Supporting participants in reflecting on their individual and collective menstruation-related experiences and the ways in which socio-cultural norms dictate and shape these experiences


• Providing a working knowledge of menstrual/reproductive anatomy and the menstrual cycle as a whole 


• Providing an overview of various menstrual care options and their benefits and limitations


• Discussing the dietary and lifestyle factors that support menstrual (and overall) health


• Enabling participants’ understanding of the general parameters of a healthy menstrual cycle, and identifying when seeking medical help is recommended.

All information is conveyed with the deep understanding that menstrual and reproductive health are not independent of or separate from the rest of the body; rather, they are integrally and intricately tied to one’s overall health and wellbeing, and must therefore be addressed as such.

Educational efforts are accompanied by the distribution of environmentally-friendly menstrual products that are safe and healthy for the body, such as reusable cloth pads and menstrual cups, to those who wish to use them but lack the means to procure such products for themselves. In this way, the initiative aims to address the inequitable access to menstrual products that are not harmful to the health of those who use them.

In 2021, Pad and Prejudice organized 23 sessions with over 600 women and adolescent girls from marginalized communities in and around Lucknow. Partnering with Asan Cup, Pad and prejudice distributed over 200 menstrual cups to women and girls who lacked access to menstrual products.