03/02/2022
Fun post!!! ( do read this )
PS. All comments shall be perceived as a hushed whisper by default - don’t worry.
I was brought up in a malayali household with 2 elder sisters, went to an only girls school as well. I still didn’t know what periods meant until I was probably 11-12 and the school HAD to teach us what it was ( awkward first aid visit with 30 plus students, one Dr Chaturvedi, holding a single sanitary napkin showing us what it was - 15 minutes tops)
Mind you, that was when I finally saw what a sanitary napkin was in person , cause OFCOURSE at home it was hidden from my sight, (obviously I did sniff some foul play when amma and chechis used to secretly throw a newspaper ball out every few days a month).
Once I did get my period, Amma called up relatives and said - “avalu porathayi tto”🙄which translates to “she’s become outside okay”- when I was very much inside that room and hadn't become anything else.
My school friends started saying hey you got your chums? -pointing at stains on the skirt & I was like - 🥴 what???? Then I got used to the word chums and I did use it myself for a while.
Also the famous -UNN DINO MEIN KHUSH KAISE RAHENGE??? With the petit lady in white pants and white shorts, with flowers from her bum flying around to show that the pad is scented 🤣
Few years back- precisely 2 years back actually, I was to meet a friend, when she texted me saying, “hey sorry yaar, aunty rose has come to visit”, I figured some aunt of hers came to meet her, I think I asked her some silly question back about the aunt as well, which is when I got educated as to what that reference meant 🤣
Funny that even now we refer to periods with anything other than that very word.
What else have you heard periods being called 🤪