This 8-month national campaign used popular, entertaining platforms like television, radio, printed materials, cinema/theatres, and the internet to promote equality within marriage that - it is hoped - will enable women to negotiate condom use and other measures to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS and other infections. What were intended to be sensitive yet tough/masculine campaign messages were translated into 8 languages: Bengali, English, Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Mizo, Tamil, and Telugu. The campaign also included a music video which explored the spread of HIV in married couples; it featured popular actors Mandira Bedi and Samir Soni and was set to the song ‘Maati’ from Breakthrough’s ‘Mann ke Manjeere: An Album of Women’s Dreams’. More than 160 news stories appeared in almost every mainstream newspaper, magazine and TV station with headlines like “Wives ask husbands to wear a condom”, “A campaign to give voice to HIV infected women”, and “Do you care for your sweetheart?”. To view the music video and TV spots, or to learn more about Breakthrough, please visit the What Kind of Man are You? page on the Breakthrough website.

Breakthrough also worked in partnership with web portal Rediff, which helped set up an SMS-based helpline for HIV/AIDS, receiving more than 20,000 queries. Breakthrough disseminated posters, bookmarks and calling cards carrying the SMS helpline number, as well as phone numbers of other non-profit organisations working on HIV/AIDS. Outdoor billboards, and bus, train and metro panels further deepened the message. A set of three post-cards, produced by the creators of the comic strip Badmash, addressed the issues of prevention, negotiating safer sex, and stigma and discrimination towards people with HIV/AIDS.

HIV/AIDS, Rights, Women, Gender, Safe Sex, Relationships, Marriage.

Breakthrough states that the rates of HIV infection among women in India are steadily rising. According to them, more than two million women in India are infected with HIV (2006) and most of them have contracted the virus from their husbands or primary male partners. Almost 85% of infections in women result from sex with their husbands or primary partners. Yet, only 5% of Indian women have comprehensive knowledge about ways to prevent HIV/AIDS. Organisers contend that the increase of HIV/AIDS among women is one more manifestation of women's unequal status in society. Women suffer various forms of violence all through their lives; HIV/AIDS has now added to these problems because women find it very difficult to negotiate safe sex or condom use, whether as sex workers, wives, or girlfriends.

Through collaborations with the entertainment industry, Breakthrough reports that it has reached 200 million people with television, radio and print media. Click here for more details on the rollout of this campaign.