Arunachalam Muruganantham (Padman) is a
social entrepreneur from
Coimbatore
Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...
in
Tamil Nadu,
India. He is the inventor of a low-cost sanitary pad-making machine and is credited for innovating grassroots mechanisms for generating awareness about traditional unhygienic practices around
menstruation
Menstruation (also known as a period, among other colloquial terms) is the regular discharge of blood and mucosal tissue from the inner lining of the uterus through the vagina. The menstrual cycle is characterized by the rise and fall of hor ...
in rural India. His mini-machines, which can manufacture
sanitary pads for less than a third of the cost of commercial pads, have been installed in 23 of the 29 states of India in rural areas. He is currently planning to expand the production of these machines to 106 nations.
The movie ''
Period. End of Sentence.
''Period. End of Sentence.'' is a 2018 documentary short film directed by Rayka Zehtabchi about Indian women leading a quiet sexual revolution. The film stars Arunachalam Muruganantham, Shabana Khan, Gouri Choudari, Ajeya, and Anita. The documen ...
'' won the
Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject) for the year 2018. The 2018 Hindi film ''
Pad Man'' was made on his invention, where he was portrayed by
Akshay Kumar.
In 2014, he was included in
''Time'' magazine's list of
100 Most Influential People in the World
''Time'' 100 (often stylized as ''TIME'' 100) is an annual listicle of the 100 most influential people in the world, assembled by the American news magazine ''Time''. First published in 1999 as the result of a debate among American academics, po ...
. In 2016, he was awarded the
Padma Shri by the
Government of India.
Early life
Muruganantham was born in 1961. Muruganantham grew up in poverty after his father died in a road accident.
His mother worked as a farm laborer to help in his studies. However, at the age of 14, he dropped out of school. He supplied food to factory workers and took up various jobs as a machine tool operator, yam-selling agent, farm laborer, and welder, to support his family.
Invention
In 1998, he married Shanthi.
Shortly after, Muruganantham discovered his wife collecting filthy rags and newspapers to use during her
menstrual cycle
The menstrual cycle is a series of natural changes in hormone production and the structures of the uterus and ovaries of the female reproductive system that make pregnancy possible. The ovarian cycle controls the production and release of eggs a ...
, as sanitary napkins made by
multinational corporations were expensive.
Troubled by this, he started designing experimental pads.
Initially, he made pads out of cotton, but these were rejected by his wife and sisters. Eventually, they stopped co-operating with him and refused to be the test subjects for his innovations. He realised that the raw materials cost , but the end product sold for 40 times that price.
He looked for female volunteers who could test his inventions, but most were too shy to discuss their menstrual issues with him. He started testing it on himself, using a bladder with animal blood, but became the subject of ridicule when the "sanitary pad" was discovered in his village.
As menstruation was a
taboo subject in India, it left him ostracized by his community and family.
He distributed his products free to girls in a local medical college, hoping that they would give him feedback.
It took him two years to discover that the commercial pads used
cellulose fibers derived from
pine bark
wood pulp.
The fibres helped the pads absorb while retaining shape.
Imported machines that made the pads cost .
He devised a low-cost machine that could be operated with minimal training.
He sourced the processed pine wood pulp from a supplier in
Mumbai, and the machines would grind, de-fibrate, press and sterilize the pads under
ultraviolet light before packaging them for sale. The machine costs .
In 2006, he visited
IIT Madras to show his idea and receive suggestions. They registered his invention for the
National Innovation Foundation
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
's Grassroots Technological Innovations Award; it won the award.
He obtained seed funding and founded Jayaashree Industries, which now markets these machines to rural women across India.
The machine has been praised for its simplicity and cost-effectiveness, and his commitment to social aid has earned him several awards.
Despite offers from several corporate entities to
commercialize his venture, he has refused, and continues to provide these machines to
self-help groups (SHGs) run by women.
Muruganantham's invention is widely praised as a key step in changing women's lives in India.
The machine creates jobs and income for many women, and affordable pads enable many more women to earn their livelihood during menstruation.
In addition to his own outreach, Muruganantham's work has also inspired many other entrepreneurs to enter this area, including some who propose to use waste banana fibre or bamboo for the purpose.
In popular culture
Muruganantham has become well known as a social entrepreneur. He has given lectures at many institutions including
IIT Bombay,
IIT Madras,
IIM Ahmedabad,
IIM Bangalore,
[ Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani – Goa Campus and Harvard University. He has also given a TED talk.]
See also
* Menstrual taboo
* Women in India
References
External links
Story of Arunachalam Muruganantham
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muruganantham, Arunachalam
20th-century Indian inventors
Indian social entrepreneurs
Women's health
People from Coimbatore
1962 births
Living people
Recipients of the Padma Shri in social work
20th-century Indian businesspeople
Businesspeople from Tamil Nadu
21st-century Indian businesspeople
Social workers from Tamil Nadu
21st-century Indian inventors
Social entrepreneurs