Hisar Entrepreneur Uses Sanitary Pad Packets to Reunite Missing Women with Families

A unique initiative by a young entrepreneur in Haryana’s Hisar has helped reunite several missing women with their families by using sanitary pad packaging as a tool to spread awareness.

Rajvinder Kaur, a 28-year-old biomedical engineer and founder of sanitary pad brand Flowelle, came up with the idea while working with women staying at the Bhagyashree Mahila Ashram in Hisar. Many inmates at the shelter home had lost contact with their families or were unable to recall their home addresses. Instead of treating them merely as shelter home residents, Rajvinder saw them as daughters, wives and mothers who deserved a chance to return to their loved ones. 

To help trace their families, she printed photographs of the missing women on sanitary pad packets along with a contact phone number. The packets were then distributed through her existing network and awareness campaigns, increasing the chances that someone might recognise the women. 

The simple yet innovative idea soon produced results. So far, three women — Suman, Rajouri and Neha — have been reunited with their families after their photos were spotted on the packets.= In one case, Suman’s family, who had come to Fatehabad for labour work, recognised her photo on a packet and contacted the shelter home. In another instance, the sarpanch of a village in Rajasthan identified Rajouri after seeing her picture on the packaging.

Rajvinder originally started her venture to promote menstrual hygiene awareness and supply eco-friendly sanitary pads. Alongside her business, she regularly conducts awareness sessions in schools and distributes free samples to underprivileged women. 

Her work with shelter homes eventually inspired the idea of using product packaging to help locate families of missing women. Caretakers at the ashram say the initiative proved more effective than traditional methods used to trace relatives.

For Rajvinder, the emotional reunions made the effort worthwhile. She says seeing families meet again after years of separation was one of the most fulfilling moments of her life.