Picking Up The Tab-oo!
Akshay Kumar has a way of pulling off socially relevant cinema and this time it’s about breaking the stigma around sanitary pads and periods. “Pad Man is about a much-needed revolution,” says Kumar.
27 Jan 2018 8:00 PM IST
It's been talk of the town ever since the film was announced, a movie that revolves around the sanitary napkin. But, then, Akshay Kumar has a way of pulling off socially relevant cinema even when it deals with taboos, myths and, amazingly, women's hygiene. But, Kumar underscores, Pad Man is no documentary film. He assures us that the movie is as commercial as it is meaningful, just as his recent release, Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, was. Since the film revolves around the sanitary napkin, Team Box Office India decides to have a chat with the man of the moment, Akshay Kumar, while Vajir Singh tries to interrupt in vain. Well, he's all ears, at any rate! Read on:
BOI: We know that it is going to be a wonderful movie and that it is based on the life of Mr Arunachalam Muruganatham, who invented low-cost sanitary napkins that changed the face of women's hygiene in the country. It was quite a revolution at that point of time.
AK: Do you know that it is a love story?
BOI: Yes, we could see some of that from the trailer and songs. But I wasn't aware that it was primarily one.
AK: I have done a lot of love stories in my time. This is one of the deepest love stories I have ever come across. For a man to do something for his wife, the way he (Arunachalam Muruganatham) has done it, is really great. And he kept on experimenting and experimenting for his wife. He had seen how his wife used dirty clothes, dirt, raakh, bhusa, etc. when her periods were on. And this is the case even today. Yeh 82 per cent of India ki haalat hai aaj.
We don't get to know of all these things as we live in a city. The best part is how this entire thing has been kept secret. It is like 'sshh…bolna mat periods hai'. Nobody is supposed to know about it because people will not like it. Arre, why wouldn't people like it? I would be the happiest person if a daughter were to tell her father… Do you have a daughter, Vajir?
VS: Two daughters.
AK: How old are they?
VS: Eleven and a half and four and a half.
AK: You will relate to this very soon and it is an important film. I would be happiest when a daughter tells her father, 'Dad, please pick up some pads for me while returning from work, I have started my period.' That is the idea of the film. It should be that casual. It is just like a son asking his father to get a toothbrush. Our society has made this difference between us. It is the most embarrassing situation for a woman. This is what the movie deals with.
But, at the core, it is a love story. Just like Toilet: Ek Prem Katha was, where a man made a toilet inside the house for his wife. It is just like that. Not only did he make a pad for her but he made a low-cost pad for her. He created a full machine to make this low-cost pad. Poora machine bana diya. The best part was that this particular machine cost one crore rupees but he made it on a budget of just 60,000. And how did he make it? He simply used common sense.
And by using a little common sense, he kick-started a revolution. He is one of the best innovators ever, and has even received the Presidential Award. He was invited to speak at the United Nations and selected as one of the 100 most influential people in the world by TIME magazine. It is unbelievable!
VS: Also, in the trailer, there is a bit where he creates something that can cut an onion.
AK: Yes, you saw that! It was great! All he did was attach a motor to a toy and turns it into a chopping machine. And this is all true. All true. That man thinks so differently. He saw his wife crying while chopping onions and, one day, while going to work… He is actually a welder…
VS: He is a welder by profession?
AK: Yes. So he was going to work one day and he spotted this toy in a shop. Something clicked in his mind and he bought the toy, turned it around and the result was this innovative idea jiski wajah se biwi ki aankh mein aansoon hi nahi aaye. In this manner, he has created many other inventions too.
VS: Tell us about the other things he has created.
AK: Don't you want to watch the film? OK, I will tell you everything now, no need to watch the movie. (Laughs)
VS: No, no. We all are looking forward to Pad Man.
AK: But, yes, he has invented many things, like the one I mentioned above. And all he does is use common sense, which is something we have forgotten to do. It looks so simple when he does it. When I saw the machine, the one he invented to make low-cost sanitary napkins, I thought that yeh machine main bhi bana sakta tha. If you were to see it, you would feel the same way too. When I went on Bigg Boss, I showed the machine to everyone. On the show, I even showed Salman (Khan) how to make a sanitary pad. Then I asked him if he had ever touched a sanitary pad before and he said, 'Nahi yaar, Akshay, aaj pehli baar sanitary pad haath mein liya hai. (Laughs)
But 99 per cent of Indian men have never held a sanitary pad in their hands. When it comes to, say, a Band-Aid, everyone has touched one but that's not how it is with a sanitary pad. I recently went to a college to promote the film and I asked the guys whether they had ever held a pad in their hands? Only four boys raised their hands.
VS: But why only B and C class centres? In colleges, even in metro cities, girls are embarrassed to let their friends know that they have got their period.
AK: Yes, so we have to train the girls too. We have to make them understand that there is nothing to feel shy about. There are so many instances I can tell you about. One of the more shocking ones was about this 14-year-old school girl who got her period and had stained her skirt a little. The teacher noticed this and made the girl stand up in front of the class. The teacher pointed out how girls 'are not taking care' of themselves during their period, and thus staining their clothes.
The next day, the class learnt that the girl had committed suicide because the teacher had shamed her in front of her class. She couldn't bear the embarrassment. You cannot shame someone like this and teachers need to realise this. This is what I talk about in this movie.
Many people have asked me whether I am tense about Padmaavat releasing along with Pad Man. And I am, like, I am not scared. That movie is good. My movie is also good. But there is a difference between the two. Padmaavat talks about history and Pad Man talks about the future… what India should be like. It is about a revolution. India is the worst place for sanitary hygiene in the world as 82 per cent of women in India – 82 per cent – still don't use sanitary napkins. We have no idea about things like this.
Recently, my niece had a friend staying over at her home for three to four days. I was, like, great but why suddenly such a long vacation? Parents ne permission de di? I was told that the friend had a puja taking place in her home and so her parents had suggested that she stay at a friend's place. And this is in Mumbai. It is ridiculous!
BOI: It still happens. Many of my married friends are sent from their in-laws' homes to their mother's place when they get their period.
AK: Bolo, yeh hota hai. But I am telling you that yeh change hoga. It has already started happening in some people, slowly and steadily. Look at us, we are doing this interview today and we are talking about sanitary pads. Kabhi socha tha pad ke upar interview hoga? Even Hollywood has not made a movie like this, to date. We are discussing sanitary pads because there is nothing to be ashamed about. It's just like talking about a cough, a cold, etc. It is as natural as that. But, yes, it is a huge struggle.
BOI: Do you think that the stigma attached to this subject, at least for now, will deter the family audience from watching this movie? Will they not feel awkward to watch it with their daughters?
AK: The youngsters will go and watch it. And slowly, they will drag their parents into cinemas. I am not worried about it. For me, this movie is already a super hit even before it is released. Do you know why? A few days ago, I was in my vanity van and I overheard these four men talking outside. One of them said, 'Akshay ki picture ka trailer dekha kya? Pad Man ka trailer dekha kya? He is wearing pink panties with sanitary pads. How can these guys show stuff like sanitary pads? Lekin bindaas banaya yaar film, kya baat karna chahiye, kaisa hona chahiye…sahi hai.' Now you tell me… have you ever heard a group of four guys talking about sanitary pads unless it's a joke?
VS: No.
AK: Everyone has made jokes about it before but no one actually speaks about this subject. Just log into any social media platform and you will see so many people talking about sanitary pads. It has become a topic of discussion, whether it is good, bad or ugly. There are some people writing negative comments on it too. This one guy wrote to me and said, 'What, yaar, Akshay, you will make a movie on sanitary pads now? You should be ashamed of yourself.' And I was, like, at least this person engaged in a conversation on this topic. If he says this today, he might have a different perspective on it tomorrow. But at least we have started talking about it.
VS: That's also because a superstar of your stature is doing a film like this…
AK: As I said, I am already happy that people are talking about it; that is more important. I am very happy with the movie.
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