For almost a year now, students from Calicut Medical College campus have been creating haikus, plastering them all over the campus and bombarding social media.
Sreya Mariyam Salim, the student magazine editor of the college, told BuzzFeed that it started as a microtale competition conducted by the college union earlier this year. The campaign spun from an intern who suggested that he walk across the campus with an uncovered packet of sanitary napkins in hand. "Nobody was ready to accept it. It was then that we noticed the taboo that surrounded the topic of menstruation in the society," she said.
"The greatest achievement would be that it converted menstruation into a topic of open discussion in the campus," Salim stated to BuzzFeed. "This acts as a reminder that a small act of courage can bring about a huge change," she added.
Every haiku focuses on one thing – the stigma behind menstruation. Each microtale reflects a different perspective of the issue, ranging from anger to happiness, hope and satire. Here are some of the most powerful ones:
