Akshay Kumar will play the lead in “Padman,” a new feminist Bollywood movie that seeks to remove the stigma around periods in India and around the world.
Akshay Kumar — one of the biggest names in Bollywood — will play the lead role in “Padman,” a movie inspired by the true story of a man who invented a low-cost device to make sanitary pads for women and girls in his village.
The film aims to remove the stigma around periods.
Kumar told Business Insider that he believes entertainment can normalize taboo subjects in a way that other mediums can’t.
Around the world, millions of low-income women and girls do not have access to sanitary pads or tampons. As a result, many miss or drop out of school, stunting economic opportunities down the line and reinforcing taboos around menstruation.
The issue is especially prevalent in rural India.
Tech: Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar will be in a new feminist movie about menstrual pads
