Thursday, December 31, 2015

Hurr Hurr Hurr!!! - The BNLF Fever

It has been two months since BNLF and I can't stop reminiscing those two days. (Pardon the waaaaaaay delayed post, just couldn't finish it. But hey better late than never no?)

 Blog Now Live Forever being the anthem and the spirit of the meet hosted by the pioneering of Indian Bloggers' Community - Indiblogger.in and the very energetic and charged bloggers from far and wide.
The two day meet - 31st October and 1st November 2015 - held at The Lalit hotel in Mumbai, was nothing short of a revelation.

October 31, 2015
Standing in queue waiting to enter flight BNLF.

Within minutes amidst the buzz of conversations online and offline among bloggers, BNLF hashtag had started to trend on Twitter! Kickstart to the morning.



The IndiBand Blunder In the Code set the stage on fire while belting out some solid all time hits to rouse each of the 600+ bloggers at the venue.



Enter Mrs Funnybong - Purba Ray
The show began with Purba Ray taking the stage introduced by her close blogger buddy Vinita Bahl aka BlogwatiG. Draped in a sari, she started out by talking on how she should've stuck to wearing leather pants. The hilarity ensued when she spoke on the beef debacle by commenting 'Why should gaais (cows) have all the fun?'



To be very frank I had not heard of her name nor her blog before knowing that she'll be delivering the keynote at the BNLF. But I truly found her to be as a-musing as her blog.

Next up was Arnab Ray - the great bong
Again I was not aware that Arnab Ray was the chief architect behind the Mithun Madness even though I follow his +greatbong tweets on twitter. Pardon my ignorance!

Arnab delivered his keynote on the aspect of creative writing and shared his journey from owning a undiscovered blog to one of the most read blogsposts on the internet. Also having written multiple books. All thanks to his Prabhuji.



This was followed by a quick tea break.

Next up was Christoph Trappe for his keynote on the importance of Authentic Storytelling for bloggers and businesses.



His keynote was a precursor to his training the next day on Authentic Storytelling. What I especially liked apart from his keynote, was him acknowledging almost every tweet about him or addressed to him. Very few top influencers do that.


Anshul Tiwari was next up on-stage and I heaved a sigh of relief that I had witnessed him at Indiblogger & BigRock's WordUp meet back in 2014 and was known to me. I was yet again thoroughly mesmerized by his talk where his movement Youth Ki Awaaz was a living example on the power of blogging. Public Opinion is indeed the next superpower - his talk resonated with the audiences views. Anshul also shared a surprising fact that YKA did not do advertising, but yet is sustaining throughout the years.

Lunch followed with passable desserts (the food blogger in me could not resist from commenting on the food).
But the true dessert was Kanan Gill :)
Again I felt like I've been living under a rock all this while since I had no idea who he was, only did the welcome screams grow louder (and asking my neighbour) is when I realized that he's a popular YouTube star.
So this funny guy who was out to deliver his keynote on content in videos ended up with his journey on how he ended up making really really funny videos by discovering his passion. He illustrated his journey through a series of his actual diary entries! His talk was a laugh riot!





Jeff Bullas, the leading content marketer from down under.


The session by Preeti Shenoy on her journey from a blogger to a best-selling author was perhaps a dream come true for most bloggers who want to become a rockstar author.

The last and definitely not the least session was of Bruce "The Air Raid Siren" Dickinson. The much much awaited session for Iron Maiden fans. Now, frankly I'm not a Maiden fan - I've heard a couple of songs and all - and nor do I follow his pursuits. So my enthusiasm was understandably dim.

But post his session, I realised that the man is pure genius. Simple and effective strategy: 0 + 0 = 1 
That was his magic, behind being an entrepreneur, to a pilot and a brewer. All in one!





Bruce Dickinson with his 'Smartphone' - Keeping it simple.
 


Explaining how the idea of a beer came about.
November 1, 2015

 Day 2 of the BNLF ushered in a new learning experience for me. We had two in-depth training workshops by Christoph Trappe and then by Jeff Bullas.

 Chirstoph started with his breakout training on Six Steps to Stop Traditional Marketing and Start Authentic Blogging.
Christoph Trappe at his Authentic Blogging workshop
 After which was lunch. We were also treated to a MasterClass on Gourmet Italian cuisine. Check out the post here.

And after that was Jeff Bullas' training on 7 steps to Blogging Mastery.

Jeff Bullas at his training session
  On attending both sessions, we were promised to be certified from the newly to-be-launched IndiBlogger's Blogging Academy - WeBlog Academy!
The IB core team that made #BNLF happen

After all of that, 2 months on I can still recall the finer aspects of BNLF. It was indeed an enriching experience and hope to put in the inputs into my blogging and overall life goals.

Thank you IndiBlogger!




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Tuesday, December 22, 2015

What do kids want? | The Flipkart Lil' Stars Launch


We know what men want, thanks to all those websites. We know what women want; there's a movie dedicated to it. What about kids? Do we know what kids want? Nope, not even parents.

Especially if one has to shop for them. Having to find a toy for my almost two year old daughter is becoming increasingly difficult as the day passes. Thanks to all of the cousins, neighbours, the newspaper print ads, the advertisements on TV, the vibrantly decorated window displays of the stores in the mall I am even more confused what and when to shop for my daughter. Had she be going to school by now, her school friends and classmates would've been added to the mix. Moreover, the more digitally savvy kids these days are the more are the demands. These are the source of all the There will be more and more such sources of influencers, and these influencers will sway your child's mindset and in turn your purchasing decision.

In my opinion, here is a list of the key trends/factors that influence parents like me while shopping for kids:

Convenience - Shopping online saves you from the traffic, the endless rickshaw flagging, the parking woes, the sale rush and the limited payment options. Just sit back, relax with a mug of tea, click, click, scroll, add to cart, add address, payment, and wait for delivery.

Try and Buy /Return Policy - Some e-commerce retailers let you try the merchandise on the time of delivery and only pay for it, if it meets the requirements. Even if it happens that you did not like the fit/ colour or the product was not up to the mark, you can return it within the stipulated time frame.

Pre-ordering: Sometimes getting your hands on the latest merchandise before the rest adds to the glee of shopping. This feature is not seen on offline stores.

Discounts: Sorting products in any category according to their level of discounts or price is great for those on a budget yet want to shop online.

Reviews: Product reviews really really help in making the purchasing decision a more informed one. Especially, reviews which are by certified buyers help you sift the wheat from the chaff.

Gift Vouchers: Thanks to the paucity of time and resources, more and more employers like to gift e-GVs (Electronic Gift Vouchers) to their employees for various occasions.

Granted with double income backed parents with less time on their hands to shop offline, online retailers happily indulging their child(ren) with the latest in apparel, toys, books and more.

Interestingly, India's leading e-commerce brand Flipkart.com had published an article on the 5 e-commerce trends to watch out for in 2015. As we come to the end of 2015, we can see the success of most of the predicted trends especially Mobile Commerce flourishing with the likes of Flipkart's Big App Shopping days. Which is currently running from December 21-23, 2015 exclusively on Flipkart's app.

PC: Indiblogger.in

Flipkart in association with IndiBlogger hosted a meet for bloggers to announce and launch the Flipkart Lil' Stars - with a keen focus on cracking what the kids want.

And trust Flipkart to know running a kid's store is no child's play! Take a look at this FlipTrends 2015 info-graphic that depicts the top selling brands, top searched kid's products and the top selling toys on Flipkart.

Top toy brands on Flipkart
PC: Flipkart.com

What's more according to Technopack's report:
Mechanical puzzles such as the Shengshou Mirror Cube and Rubik's Cube were among the top five toys sold in 2015 on the online platform. Helicopters and remote-control driven cars are other favourites. Categories related to children and young mothers are the fastest-growing categories in India at present, according to Arvind Singhal, chairman of Technopak.
So on 19th of December, I was one of the bloggers invited to witness the launch of Flipkart Lil' Stars at popular resto-pub Blue Frog, Lower Parel. Revisiting this place after a year, brought back fun memories of the last IndiMeet held.

The meet started with veteran blogger Kalpana Behara taking the stage to talk about her journey as a blogger and how on becoming a mother changed her blogging style. She also spoke about how a blogger struggles at times to write.


After which we had representatives from leading kids brands Disney, Mattel, Chhota Bheem and Flipkart join for an open discussion on what influences parents' decision while shopping online for their kids. And the same points as mentioned above cropped up in the discussion.


Next up the IndiBand 'Blunder in the Code' enthralled us with unplugged version of some hit songs.

After that, we were engaged to a fun session of Ad-Mad, where we had to create an advertisement presentation on showcasing Flipkart's new kids section by featuring certain products.


Here, my team opened up their bag of tricks and presented a skit named #FlipkartSanta. With
'Age of Innocence' as the theme, we represented the various stages of a kid's childhood and the product associated with every age.

So the meet was fun with my fellow blogger friends Shaivi Sharma, Priyanka Purkayastha, Ekta Khetan, Jhilmil D Saha, Amreen Shaikh, Geeta Sridhar and Sujata Tawde. As always, it was great to meet them again.

And as a token of remembrance of the meet, we got to keep the plush toy of Chhota Bheem from his upcoming movie - Chhota Bheem and the Himalyan Adventure, due release on January 8, 2015.

With this I wish all my readers a very Merry Christmas! 
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Friday, December 18, 2015

Your Child's Career Planning- Are you on the same page as your child?

Once we become a parent, when someone asks us the best moment in a parent’s life, we would most probably say the day our child was born. And some years down the line, if you were asked what the next best moment in your life is? You would most probably say, the day you saw your child well settled in life.

And as parents, you would want nothing but the best for your child. Be it a shiny new toy, the best clothes, the best schooling, the best locality to live in – you will desire all the best things in life that you can afford for your family. And you always strive to do the best. Even when one fine day your child comes to you and tells you that he/she wants to become an Astronaut. You smile and say to your little one, to keep dreaming that dream and that one day you will make it happen for them, come what may. Your child continues to pursue on their passion and dream of becoming an astronaut one day when he grows up.

But have you thought about the best higher education for your child yet? Have you started planning for the finances for your child’s education? Did you #DoYourHomework for your child’s future?

Is your version of being future ready for your child’s higher education a mere education loan?

These and more questions were addressed through an interesting exercise for the new investor education awareness campaign called #DoYourHomework by Axis Mutual Fund.

A while back, I was invited to Axis Mutual Fund’s Blogger’s Meet at Axis House, Lower Parel in Mumbai to do my homework for my child's future.


About the Exercise:

The spacious room where the meet was hosted, had lined up six pairs of easels with their backs to each other.


Parents and their children were invited over and were asked to paint what they thought their child wanted to be when they grew up. Likewise, their children were asked to paint what they wanted to be when they grew up.




When they were done, their paintings were displayed for all to see.



Through the results, parents realised how different their opinion of their child’s ambition is from their child in most cases.
Through this experiment, parents realised whether or not they were on the same page as their child when it comes to their child’s aspirations.

In conclusion, I came to understand that children of this generation have the complete freedom to choose the career of their choice and keeping this in mind for my child - though I will undisputedly support it emotionally - I’ll have to also support it financially as well.




Try it out for yourself!

In case you found this interesting, just try this exercise with your child. You might just be surprised by the results!

After reading this post, you can head to the #DoYourHomework micro-site and explore the fun side of doing one’s homework with story books, colouring books for your kid and the #DoYourHomework calculator for parents.

Alternatively, you can also download the Homework App on your mobile.

You and your spouse work hard day in and day out. Now is time for your money also work hard for you. Get started on planning for your child's future, because it's is never too early!

All the best! 



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Thursday, December 17, 2015

Book Review: The Bestseller She Wrote - Ravi Subramanian



Book Title: The Bestseller She Wrote
Author: Ravi Subramanian
Pages: 391  
Genre: Thriller/Drama
Price:   Flipkart: INR 266 | Amazon: INR 180
Publisher:  Westland Ltd

Prior to reading this book, I have read and reviewed ‘God is a Gamer’ by the same author. In my opinion, it was a great read. So I was naturally inclined to read this book as well.  But it was slightly different from the genre of his earlier books - fast paced thrillers. This time, author Ravi Subramanian decided to take a shot at romance thriller kind of genre. And he does well. 

A combustible cocktail of love, betrayal and redemption reads the by-line. And so with trepidation, I delve into the book.



One look at the book cover and one would get a hint of the story and the eventual dalliance that would unfold in the book. The cover is nice, with snapshots of the book’s trailer and is designed by Think WhyNot.

Coming to the story of the book, in short the book is all about Aditya Kapoor's life as a bestseller author how on meeting Shreya Kaushik, a bull-headed opportunistic overambitious IIM Bangalore (also Ravi Subramanian’s alma-mater ) graduate, puts his personal and professional life in turmoil and promises to wreak havoc and irreparable damage in his life. How Aditya tries to put back the pieces and find redemption is what the story is all about.

Initially, a couple of chapters down, it felt like a page out of an author's life and more so perhaps akin to a semi-autobiography. This is proven by references to real life authors like Ashwin Sanghvi and his book Private India (an attempt at cross selling, perhaps?) and even BlogAdda’s Nirav Sanghavi! And even a backhanded mention of a certain author who is concentrating more on judging Bollywood dance shows over his writing. Very cheeky, Mr. Subramanian!

Overall, the story is a potboiler, with the right mix characters, conversations, twists and turns.  The chapters are short and engross the reader, making it difficult to put the book down.

The book also gives a sneak peek into a writer’s life and in a way guides the reader of the process of writing, editing, publishing and marketing the book. For a novice writer like me- who wants to understand the nuances of the publishing world- it is like a blueprint.

There are some gems like: "A lottery gives you a better chance at success than getting a book published."

“The vestiges of the past, unless buried, will always keep cropping up and impact relationships”
“Without these bookstores, there will be no books, and without books, there will be no culture”
“In relationships, particularly those that are adulterous in nature, the first time is always the most difficult. That’s the point in time when one’s conscience makes its presence felt the most and people are consumes by regret. Once that bridge is crossed, regret is often forgotten”

All in all, this book is well written like his earlier books, Ravi Subramanian keeps the reader engaged throughout without prematurely revealing the suspense.
Special thanks to BlogAdda for sending me an author signed copy of this book!

You can take a look at the book’s trailer:





I am reviewing ‘The Bestseller She Wrote’ by Ravi Subramanian as a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!
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Sunday, December 13, 2015

Amchi Mumbai - My favourite city

I have visited and stayed at many places across the length and breadth of India. And of course I have my favourites in every zone of India. Yet there is one such city that stands out amongst all, the one place you call home.

Mumbai (erstwhile known as Bombay)
Amchi Mumbai (means Our Mumbai)

Let me describe my city on the basis of three attributes: Drive, Design and Connect.

DRIVE:


It holds a special place in my heart since it is where I was born and brought up.

More dreams are realised and extinguished in Mumbai than any other city in the world
PC: scoopwhoop.com

More so, it is a place that thousands from various parts of the country throng to, with a dream in their eyes and hope. After all, it is said to be the financial, commercial and entertainment capital of India. A hope that the city will absorb them like one of its own. If you look around the city, you will see the inhabitants are not only the originally inhabited Marathi folk, but there are people settled from all over India.

PC: ink361.com

In my opinion, the mere basic instinct of survival of the fittest is what drives the inhabitants of this mayanagari. This instinct is either in the DNA of the citizens or has to be cultivated into one’s DNA. And by this instinct, Mumbai can either make you or break you.

DESIGN:


From the Gothic architectural craftsmanship of the British era in the Gateway of India, Asiatic Library… to the modern marvels of the Sealink or the Reclamation, Mumbai has a distinct design for all.
For instance, this island city that originally constituted of seven islands, has now been redesigned to a bustling metropolis that stretches from Churchgate to Virar. An aerial view of the city and you can see that this city has the structure to accommodate the teeming, crammed hutments but thriving local business of the largest slum in Asia: Dharavi – to the spacious inhabitants of one of the busiest railway stations in India – Dadar. And one can still easily navigate their way through the arteries and the veins of this mahanagari through local train, BEST bus, kaali-peeli taxi, autorickshaw and of late, the Metro.

The design does not limit to the infrastructure or heritage of Mumbai, it is prevalent in the food as well. Be it affordable local fast food like vada pav for a poor labourer's sustenance or the Indianised chinese food fare in a suburban mall, the city has designed its elements to satiate the hunger pangs of each of its inhabitant. Even at 3 am your sudden craving for pav bhaji can be doused.

CONNECT:


Bombay was renamed to Mumbai after the Goddess Mumbaidevi fairly recently in 1996. And the Bombay-ite became a Mumbai-kar. Regardless of its name, the soul of any city lies in the people.

PC: thestandingcoin.com

It is natural for every visitor coming to the city for the first to get lost. But it is unnatural for them to not receive any help. Ask the dabbawallahs - the tiffin connection of the city's hunger. Their's is a symbiotic relationship like any other Mumbaikar - they depend on the city for sustenance as the sustenance depends on their time of arrival. 

The widespread connect across languages, classes, sects, and nationality even is displayed in the times when Mumbai was in distress. Be it the dreadful 26th July downpour and eventual floods that paralysed the city network, but not its spirit. Not even the November 2008 terror attacks on prime locations in the city squash its never-say-die attitude. And neither did the dreadful terror train bomb blasts dent humanity. After each and every incident this city has faced, it has bounced back like a phoenix rising from the ashes.

PC: facebook.com/BeautifulMumbai

Through these key attributes, I feel amchi Mumbai is indeed #madeofgreat.
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Saturday, December 12, 2015

Stop the shaming!

I recently came across this article which really perturbed me. It talks about this woman - Mona Joshi's- experience when shopping at a designer trousseau store in Mumbai. On further inquiring about a size which was not in stock/ unavailable, she asked what should women of her size do? "Go to the gym" was the shocking reply from the salesperson.
Mona left the store with disbelief of what she had heard and with the help of her rakhi brother sent a complaint email to the store owner, that was shared on social media and which drew a lot of support for her and negative reviews for the fashion house.

It eventually became a PR disaster for the emerging fashion house, once the story in Indiatimes was shared 5k+ times. A blot on their customer service with social media sharing the story like wildfire, just added the fuel to the fire on the brand's bad PR.

Sure, the guy could've courteously said "Sorry ma'am we do not have the size you are looking for" or any other alternate answer and we'd not have read about this incident. But I'm glad she stood up and took action and did not take it lying down.

If you think the salesman was doing her a favour by giving her some harsh advice or joking about the whole thing, then I feel you are a special kind of idiot and need to move on to the blog for common sense. If you think his comment was blown out of proportion and Mona was making a mountain of a molehill, then read on....

Frankly, I don't really blame they guy. He's every other guy. And ever other lay person, as a matter of fact, does think the same way - that a woman must perceptibly fit into a particular size mould.

But in fact, this is about a larger issue at hand. It is just not the fight against fat-shaming a slightly plump woman coping with medical issues, but it is about the fight every tall, short, thin, fat, curvy, more specifically, an Indian woman goes through the pressure from the society of being fit into a particular pre-notioned acceptable shape. It's about body-shaming.

Victoria's Secret's campaign being slammed for body shaming
PC: etonline

If you think I'm being a feminist here? I'm not. It is a well known fact that women receive more flak than Indian men who are who are over weight or plus sized. And more so, Indian women in particular, thanks to our patriarchal society. Don't believe me? Just open up the newspaper and count the number of advertisements that feature weight loss stories of women or a showcased slender model for a gym ad. Nobody wants to know the real reason behind their weight gain or shape or size. No one wants to know about their struggle behind battle inner demons and the constant ridicule the face from their dear ones to random stares and sneering from on-lookers on the street. Right from little girls to elderly ladies, no woman is spared!

'87-89 born, Slim, Fair, Tall'  is common to be demanded in the matrimonial sections for the want of slim and slender brides. We all know celebrities are always under the constant glare of the paparazzi and the constant scrutiny of fans and critics alike. But the scrutiny and criticism goes a tad too far when it comes to ridiculing their sudden weight gain. Be it singer Adele, actress Kim Kardashian and more such celebrities have been subjected to some or the other spotlight on their weights. Closer to home, the minute the news of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan giving birth to daughter Aradhya hit the streets, tabloids had already writing on when weight and her 'double-chin' to her original pre-pregnancy shape.

Then again, ordinary, everyday women are not photo-shopped to hide their cellulite and make them look more slender and thinner.

Then again, words like 'fat' are not openly used (unless it is your naughty five year old nephew/niece). The term is watered down to many synonyms make if palpable for perfect-figure challenged. Thinly veiled words like 'plump', 'slightly on the heavier side', 'curvy', and even 'chunky' are used - not just from the salespersons, but from our loved ones. Ironically, women are subjected to other women's comments on their weight and sizes, regardless of the latter's size!

More importantly, this body shaming puts all the more pressure one to look thinner than what they are. Even if they are already meeting their ideal weight for their height and body type, the want of looking spectacularly slim like supermodels or unrealistic weight loss stories over-weighs the reasoning of having sound health. And when they struggle from peer pressure to drop a particular size or look a particular shape, their social esteem takes a huge beating, so much so they are driven to depression and worst even suicide.

What we really need to blame, is the stereotypical mentality that has been cultivated about women's shape and sizes. That women are intended to be at certain figure. Not too thin, not too fat. Not too short or not too tall. Why can't we accept anyone's shape as they are? Why must they have to be slim and trim?

And it is perhaps for every woman in every age group. Just as a girl hits puberty, she has to look a particular size. The transition from teens to the twenties, she is under the constant peer pressure to be in a particular size or shape. On getting married, she has to look perfect on her D-Day, regardless of how the groom looks. Then she gets pregnant. Instead of basking in the joy of the upcoming motherhood, she is silently mulling in the back of her mind, what her mother, sister, best friend, neighbour wali aunty told her about weight gain and losing that weight after her baby is born.
Right from the beginning of her pregnancy, she is worried on how she will lose all the pregnancy weight after the delivery of her baby. Even a mother who has just delivered her baby and who has is just acclimatizing the newness and experience of motherhood, is gradually hammered and drilled, albeit passively to lose the weight she put on.

Like every other girl out there, have struggled with my weight like many other women. I have been to to be blessed with a good height and therefore, my weight does not show. Comments like "You are tall, that's why you don't look that fat" Which makes me wonder, is being taller than the average girl, also a problem?

I dissent even now to be compartmentalized into this box that defines the perfect figure.
I have been compared to other guys' for my height, who felt a pang of jealousy as I was taller than them. I have been gasped at when the needle of the weighing machine pointed in another direction. I have been constantly told by people, that constitute my near and dear ones, to shed those excess pounds before marriage. And have been at the receiving end of a barrage of comments on my shape and size as a comparison to other girl's shape and size. My figure has been like a stencil to compare other girl's figures, "She's plump like you, but not as tall as you" or "She's slightly plumper than you" And I have been guilty of feeling comforted when another woman has been plumper than me. And that I eventually felt is wrong.

Why couldn't there have been a bigger size in clothing? A size that is for real women. Who has flabby arms, but drop dead gorgeous legs. One who has perfectly sculpted shoulders, but has a plump waistline. Why can't fashion accommodate for all size and shapes in one store without having the need to go to another 'plus size store' that is for some excluded sect of people all together?

But there are steps being taken. Take for instance, Facebook taking down the 'feeling fat' emoticon and a movement towards acceptance of body diversity. More so, more and more people are opening up and taking action against shaming and bullying. I support Mona's stance. It is because of her, more women will open up and take matters into their hands.

So can we stop body shaming? Can we overcome the societal norms and perceptions on the size of women? Can we create a change in perception?

Not everyone is perfectly sized, whatever the reason may be. It is that uniqueness that sets everyone apart. The clothes should fit the person, and not the other way around!

P.S.: I could've easily responded to the comments on the post and argued with a couple of people. But as it is said ' Never argue with a fool, they will drag you down to their level and beat you by experience'
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Sunday, November 22, 2015

No Toilet Humour please

It was a normal routine morning and I was tuned into Disney Junior Channel with my kiddo whilst having breakfast. In the commercial break, Disney played a three minute filler animated series called ‘Nina Needs to Go’.
Nina Needs to Go
PC - Disney

As the name suggests, it was about a girl called Nina who ultimately needs to use the loo when in different scenarios and how she manages to relieve herself. I was mildly surprised of the content of the filler cartoon, which was uncanny to the rest of the content on the channel. It  turns out it is aimed at preschoolers to develop and get accustomed to toilet manners.

But in fact, it dawned upon me on how this is an important issue and how it needs to be rightly addressed. Nina was addressing the need of the hour – clean, hygienic, easily available sanitation and access to water. In India, where toilets are not easily accessible, and even if they are accessible, they are either unclean, lack a continuous water supply or lack safety, especially for women.

If you are under the misconception that toilets are only inaccessible in the rural areas, next time, ask your house-help about the long queues they have to stand outside a common toilet with a bucket of water to go for their daily ablutions. Even those who live in a chawl system type house more than one of these issues – unclean toilets, irregular water supply, and lack of safety for women (no source of light / no latch on the toilet doors), and disposal of waste. Especially for women, during the time of menstruation, there is more often the need to use a clean toilet.

Unclean toilets are said to be precursors to infections and diseases spread by unclean surroundings. And those diseases when spread rampantly can ultimately result in affecting the overall nutrition, especially for women and children.

And that is why #wecantwait to get clean toilets as a basic need.

World Toilet Day It's no Joke
PC: wateraid.org


To combat this, there are some actions being taken:

The United Nations declared November 19th of every year as ‘World Toilet Day’ in a bid to draw attention to the alarming fact that more than quarter of the world’s population cannot access sanitary facilities!

World Toilet day is about the 2.4 billion people who lack access to improved sanitation. It is about the nearly 1 billion people who have to defecate in the open.

“Equality, Dignity and the Link Between Gender-Based Violence and Sanitation” is the theme for this year’s World Toilet Day, which seeks to put a spotlight on the threat of sexual violence that women and girls face due to the loss of privacy as well as the inequalities that are present in usability. Toilets generally remain inadequate for populations with special needs, such as the disabled and elderly, and women and girls requiring facilities to manage menstrual hygiene.

This initiative has been activelyt In fact this very day, last year, Hindustan Unilever’s Domex launched a campaign to drive this thought and to everyone’s attention on the importance of accessible sanitation through Toilet For Babli. They highlighted many stories, induced by social sharing on the plight of village women and how then combatted building a toilet near their home. In fact, I read up on one such story of a bride refusing to go to her husband’s place, on finding out about the lack of a toilet around his home. To which, to woo the lady of his life, the man eventually built a toilet for her and all was good.


So take a moment to feel lucky to be among those who have toilets installed inside or near their homes rather than having the need to walk a mile outside of their home in the wilderness just to answer nature’s call. After all, it is no dirty joke.
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