India-based Netflix film 'Period. End of Sentence' wins Oscars for best documentary short subject

'Period. End of Sentence,' a Netflix short documentary,  has won has won the Oscars in the Documentary Short Subject category at the 91st Academy Awards. The film is produced under the banner of Guneet Monga's production house, Sikhya Entertainment, which is known for making critically acclaimed movies like Masaan, Lunchbox, and Haraamkhor. Director Rayka Zehtabchi's short film had faced competition other movies like End Game, Black Sheep, Lifeboat and A Night at the Garden. While accepting the award, Rayka Zehtabchi, with fellow producer Melissa Berton, said, "I can't believe a film about menstruation just won an Oscar!"

And the #Oscars winner is... pic.twitter.com/tvMiXH9hto

- The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 25, 2019

Well said, Rayka pic.twitter.com/tSHMjMvXCH

- The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 25, 2019

The documentary highlights a project started by students at the Oakwood School in Los Angeles, California, and their teacher, Melissa Berton. It narrates the story of women leading a revolution against the taboo surrounding menstruation, in a village on the outskirts of Delhi. These women, with no access to sanitary pads, have been struggling with this problem for generations. However, when a machine that manufactures sanitary pads is installed in the village, they learn to make their own pads. Their effort is partly enabled by high-school girls, who gathered the initial sum of the money required to buy the machine and created a non-profit organisation called The Pad Project.

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The taboo surrounding menstruation is prevalent all across the globe, including India, which prevents young women and girls from going to school, their right to worship and access to basic sanitary products.

Interestingly, 'Period. End of Sentence' was released the same year as Akshay Kumar's Padman, which revolves around the story of Arunachalam Muruganantham, also known as sanitary pads' inventor. Muruganantham also has a brief appearance in Zehtabchi's documentary.

The 91st edition of Academy Awards was held in Los Angeles.

(Edited by Vivek Dubey)

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