I was 15 when I got my periods and all my friends had got that way before me, says Sonam Kapoor!

Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor is busy promoting her forthcoming film, PadMan along with Akshay Kumar and Radhika Apte. The movie is inspired by Arunachalam Muruganantham, the inventor of low-cost sanitary napkins for women in rural areas.

In a media communication, Sonam was questioned about her reaction when she first got periods. To this, she responded, ‘’I was 15 when I got my periods and all my friends had got that way before me. I was very upset that I had not got it. So when I actually got it I was very relieved because I kept telling my parents there is something wrong with me as I did not get my periods. So, I was very very happy.’’

When questioned what advice she wants to give to other women on periods, she revealed, “That was a joke but it is true. I guess hot packs help you a lot in pain, drink lots of water, actually workout more, people think that it is better to lie down but actually the more you move it is better.”

Speaking about the situations of women in rural areas when it comes to menstruation problems, Sonam told, ''To know that only 12% of women have access to sanitary napkins is a dismal number. We have 1.6 billion populations, out of which 50% are women, which is a huge number. Out of that only, 12% have access, the fact that millions of women don't have access to proper menstrual hygiene is scary, they use awful products for themselves, they use ash, they use leaves, it is a bad situation, there is a lot of stigmas attached to it.''