Released: February 2018
Country: India
Director: R. Balki
Producer: Twinkle Khanna
Lead Actors: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoo, Radhika Apte
Synopsis:
Pad Man is a 2018 Bollywood film inspired by the story of Arunachalam Muruganantham, a real-life social activist and entrepreneur from Tamil Nadu. Upon realizing the extent to which women are affected by their menstruation, Pad Man sets out to create a low-cost sanitary pad-making machine and bring inexpensive menstrual hygiene products to women in rural India. At the climax of the film, the protagonist arrives at UN headquarters (*exterior shots of the UN Secretariat) and delivers a speech at an event organized by UN Women highlighting the social impact of menstrual hygiene (*actual scene filmed inside Jazz at Lincoln Center). Staff members of several New York-based UN entities, including the Department of Public Information (DPI), UN Women, UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and UNICEF, participated in the filming of the climactic scene as extras.
CCOI's Role:
CCOI facilitated the on-location filming at UN headquarters and coordinated the participation of UN staff members as extras in the climactic scene.
UN Locations:
Exterior of the UN Secretariat
Rooftop of the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) building
Related UN Issues:
Women's menstrual hygiene
Sustainable Development Goals - #3 Good Health and Well-being, #5 Gender Equality, and #6 Clean Water and Sanitation
News Coverage:
Facebook Live via @UnitedNationsIndia
UN Women https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=10155191266136905
[UN News] New Bollywood film about rural innovator spotlights menstrual health, women's rights