Freedom to Stand

Ever imagined getting a call of nature and having nowhere to go? That would be awkward. Well not in India, at least not for men. While women have no choice but to suppress the call of nature, men would ease themselves in some corner or wall in full public view. 

You might give it a second thought on attending to nature’s call, on seeing the condition of public toilets in India. At any given point of time, a woman who wants to pee desperately has definitely thought of this one thing, ‘we wish we could pee while standing.’ Well, why should boys have all the fun? What if women had the freedom to stand and pee! Yes, now that’s possible. 

“Ladies – You can now pee while standing,” says Pee-Buddy website. Launched by Delhi based startup First Step Digital in December last year, Pee-Buddy claims to provide women the freedom to stand and pee anywhere such as public toilets in malls, airports, hospitals, highways, railway stations or even those in the metro stations. Pee-Buddy is the first of its kind use-and-throw product that allows women to pee while standing. It is a waterproof paper funnel that can be kept in bags at all times and used in toilets to pee without causing any spills or leaks. It’s a funnel-shaped female urination device (FUD), probably the first of its kind in India. 

“With Pee Buddy, women just need to place it between the flow area (no insertion is required) and urinate. This way they can stay away from infections. On a different note, it is also useful because many times, due to dirty toilets, women hold the urge to urinate for a long time, which is a major reason for kidney stones,” said Deep Bajaj, Pee Buddy, founder as per an agency report.

It’s not always the thinking seat that pops up a brilliant idea but at times a road trip does that too. “The inspiration for Pee Buddy came from a trip in 2013,” shares Deep. “We were on a road trip on the Delhi-Jaipur highway. 

While the men drank beer and water casually, the women did not. Why? While men could pee anywhere and everywhere, womenfolk, on the other hand, needed clean toilets to ease themselves. The idea of a funnel using which women should be able to stand and pee like men was suggested by a friend’s wife.

 That thought stayed with me and the idea started taking shape thereafter,” he added. “We wanted to keep the name as direct as possible. It’s not an issue which is to be kept under wraps, common toilets are an issue and it was time that it got highlighted with same urgency,” he comments.

    

Public toilets are the hub for infectious water borne and air borne diseases causing UTI and other diseases. Women often end up using toilets in places like KFC, McDonald’s and CCD, but at the cost of buying something, which is not always possible.

 

Pee-Buddy is highly beneficial for pregnant women and arthritis patients who are advised by their doctors to restrict their body movements. The device is more reliable as it is discharged after one use, preventing any chance of bacteria accumulation if used a second time.  

“I had experienced this issue for women in my life. One with my life partner, during pregnancy, when ladies are a lot more prone to UTI and hence don’t travel much, and second in the case of my mother who had arthritis,” says Deep. Pee-Buddy is available online and in market stores all over India in packs of 5, 10, 20 and 40 for Rs 120, 200, 375, 720 respectively.