Keki Adhikari is a well-known actress, model and film producer in her native Nepal. Since October 2020, she has a new role: as goodwill ambassador for menstrual health. Working with the GIZ-implemented Support to the Health Sector Programme (S2HSP) and the Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management Partners Alliance (MHM PA), she is raising awareness about the challenges which women and girls in Nepal continue to face during their monthly periods. With more than 1.5 million followers on social media, Keki is in a powerful position to tackle the misconceptions and stigma which surround menstruation – and to advocate for dignified menstruation for all.
Part I: Tackling Taboos
In the first part of the 2-part series, Keki Adikhari wants to find out how far Nepal has come in the fight against menstrual taboos and restrictions. She takes the viewer on a journey to the far west of the country where she visits a school and a village in a rural area to learn what has changed in girls’ and women’s daily lives – and what still needs to be done to ensure that every girl in Nepal can thrive during her period.
Part II: The choice is yours
In the second film of this two-part series, Keki Adikhari is curious to find out how all the progress Nepal is making in menstrual health can be sustained in the future. She speaks with experts at a meeting of the Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management Partners Alliance in Kathmandu and attends a workshop for girls where she explores how destigmatising menstrual health can empower women and girls in Nepal.
Both videos were produced with support from GIZ on behalf of Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.