Menstrual hygiene advertising in India has seen a visible change in recent years. A category once dominated by euphemisms, blue liquid demonstrations, and outdated narratives is slowly moving toward more direct communication around periods, discomfort, and menstrual health.
This shift is also being driven by a new wave of digital brands attempting to position menstrual hygiene as a broader health and cultural conversation rather than just a product category. One such brand is Pee Safe, which has attempted to build its communication around breaking taboos, raising awareness and normalizing conversations around hygiene and women’s health. According Rithish Kumarco-founder of Pee Safe, the brand consciously chose cause-based storytelling over traditional advertising-based communication.
“As a brand, we have always relied more on cause-driven branding than traditional forms of marketing. When it comes to solving something as impactful and personal as human hygiene, partnering with a broader social cause becomes extremely important,” he says.
That philosophy has increasingly shaped the way Pee Safe approaches campaigns and partnerships. Most recently, the brand roped in cricketer Smriti Mandhana as an ambassador for its Comfort Range, positioning the association around openness, comfort and participation in sports.
Instead of treating the partnership like a conventional celebrity endorsement, the brand used it to promote conversations about how women experience menstruation in everyday life, including while playing sports, traveling or working. Their recent #BeInYourComfortZone campaign specifically attempted to challenge the idea that discomfort during periods should simply be tolerated. The campaign film focused on the idea that while periods are natural, fighting through them should not be normalized.
Kumar says the decision to work with Mandhana was based on both aspiration and cultural relevance. “In today’s context, a sportswoman like Smriti has incredible aspirations. She is inspiring millions of girls and women across India, not just to play sports, but to pursue anything they truly love,” she says.
He adds that the partnership was designed to go beyond the standard celebrity endorsement. The campaign launch integrated Mandhana into packaging, out-of-home media, digital storytelling and Menstrual Hygiene Day initiatives, reflecting how the brand increasingly sees communication as an ongoing conversation rather than isolated campaigns.
Communication in evolution
That shift also reflects a broader evolution occurring in menstrual hygiene advertising itself. For years, menstrual hygiene advertising in India followed a predictable formula of white clothing, carefree dancing, coded language and blue liquid demonstrations that completely avoided showing the reality of periods. Digital-first hygiene brands are now trying to change that narrative.
Take, for example, Pee Safe’s ‘It’s Just Periods’ ad, which featured a frustrated girl who was fed up with her family acting like she was old age every time she talked about her periods. The ad talked about how social stigmas have overshadowed menstruation, silencing voices and perpetuating myths.
In recent years, Pee Safe campaigns have increasingly focused on conversations rather than just education about the product. Last year, the brand launched the #ZeroPeriod campaign around Menstrual Hygiene Day. The campaign followed the story of a young soccer player who experienced her first period during a match and was accompanied by menstrual education campaigns in schools and underserved communities.
The company has also experimented with longer conversational formats. Her podcast property, ‘Pee Room Conversations’, focused on discussions around hygiene, relationships, body image and women’s health, topics that have traditionally remained outside of mainstream advertising conversations.
This change reflects a broader shift occurring across the category. Today, menstrual hygiene brands are increasingly acting as educational and community platforms rather than simple product marketers.
Talking about the brand’s overall communication approach, Kumar says the brand has been more about cause-driven branding than traditional forms of marketing. He adds, “With the addition of Smriti, we are now elevating that conversation even further by integrating the theme of sports into our storytelling. In many ways, we are moving from a purely cause brand to a combination of cause and culture marketing.”
Effect of social networks
Much of that change has been possible thanks to social networks. Unlike TV advertising, digital platforms have given brands the ability to talk directly, educationally and in greater detail about periods, PMOS (previously known as PCOS/D), reproductive health and hygiene. For brands in this category, social networks are no longer just a distribution channel. It’s where discovery, education and conversation happen simultaneously.
“A large percentage of consumers discover us through social media. In fact, when it comes to talking about topics that historically have not been talked about openly, social media becomes one of the most effective platforms available,” says Kumar.
Pee Safe currently operates an 80:20 split between digital and offline media, focusing heavily on Instagram, YouTube, Meta, and Google for upper-funnel awareness.
The brand has also begun experimenting with contextual and programmatic advertising around conversations around women’s health. “We are trying to collaborate with apps and platforms that already address topics relevant to women’s health and hygiene so that our messages appear in more meaningful contexts,” says Kumar.
“Especially after Smriti came on board, our communication has become much more specific and contextual. Before, our approach was much more generic,” he adds candidly.
The category is now expanding beyond periods.
The menstrual hygiene sector is currently undergoing a major transformation, expanding its reach. Discussions around PMOS, reproductive wellness, hormonal health, and menopause are increasingly coming to the fore on social media, wellness brands, and healthcare platforms.
Kumar says Pee Safe also sees its future going beyond menstrual hygiene. “Our long-term vision is to build a broader platform around women’s health and hygiene. Today we mainly talk about feminine and menstrual hygiene, but there is so much more that needs attention,” she says. She adds that the brand eventually wants to expand conversations across all stages of a woman’s life, “from puberty to menopause and beyond.”
According to Kumar, this shift is also being driven by broader societal changes. “Today there are many more women entering the workforce. They have financial independence and make decisions for themselves in ways that were not so common before,” she says.
The stigma around menstruation has not completely disappeared. But compared to a decade ago, when menstruation was treated almost entirely as something to be hidden, the conversation today is much more visible, public, and gradually becoming more honest.
