With this, Culture Machine aims to acknowledge that period pain is a natural process and it is completely okay to take some rest on the day you are in most agony

At a time when women across the globe are facing sexual harassments and gender discrimination at workplaces, an India- and Singapore-based startup has done something incredible that would certainly cheer up the fairer sex.

Culture Machine, a digital video startup headquartered in Mumbai, has introduced a new HR policy to give a day’s paid leave to women employees on the first day of their menstrual cycle, which has been hailed as a bold and revolutionary step by the media as well as the industry.

“While it isn’t new to our ears that period cramps is something that most women face and it is definitely not something we look forward to every month,” Devleena S Majumder, President (People & Culture) at Culture Machine, told e27. “It is time we face this reality; this is not an embarrassment but is part of life.”

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The new policy was triggered when one of the employees of Culture Machine was having a really bad day due to the cramps, said Majumder. “We thought about taking period pain seriously and speak up for women experiencing it, instead of having to hide it behind a ‘sick leave’ when it actually is an integral biological process which women go through. The idea behind this initiative was thus to acknowledge the fact that period pain is a natural process and it is completely okay to take some rest on the day you are in most agony and uncomfortable to work.”

The response from the female employees have been overwhelming. Its nearly 75 female employees cutting across department hailed the policy in a YouTube video created by the firm. They say they’ve now got a good enough reason to not come to work and say more workplaces should come forward to introduce such policies and accommodate the interests of female staffers.   

“The reaction of the male employees of our organisation was very overwhelming and supportive too. Right from the men in our senior management team to the boys who shot the video, the response was incredible without any resistance from anybody,” said Majumder.

Venkat Prasad, Co-founder, CTO and COO of Culture Machine, said: “We wanted to make sure that our colleagues feel appreciated, and also in a society like India where the ground reality of women empowerment is still a talk, we wanted to walk that talk.”

Culture Machine is however not the first company in the world to introduce a new ‘periods-friendly’ policy, but it has inspired many a company in India to be considerate for female workers. “An Indian-based digital marketing company followed our footsteps. I’m sure there will be many more who will want to follow Culture Machine’s path in terms of FOP leaves,” Majumder said.

Culture Machine was founded in 2013 by Prasad (COO & CTO) and Sameer Pitalwalla (CEO). Pitalwalla is former Director (Video and Celebrity) at Disney India, while Prasad worked at Product Manager at Youtube before launching Culture Machine.

Culture Machine is a technology-driven, creator-focused media company that constructs stories in the form of digital video content. With an aim to create, nurture and amplify YouTube and other digital talent for the internet generation, Culture Machine offers a one-stop shop for the big ideas, relevant creators, strategic programming and brilliant technology.

In 2015, the company raised US$18 million in Series B funding from US-based hedge fund Tiger Global Management, with participation from existing investors Zodius Capital and Times Internet, the digital media arm of India’s leading newspaper The Times of India. Previously, it raised US$3.5 million in its Series A round of funding from Zodius Capital and Times Internet.

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