Abstract

Menstruation is a natural physiological process that remains deeply entangled with social taboos, cultural restrictions, and gendered power structures in India, particularly among marginalised communities. This exploratory study examines menstrual health awareness, hygiene practices, social taboos, household pressures, and gender perceptions among Bhil and Bhilala tribal women residing in Avantika Nagar, an urban informal settlement in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. Using purposive sampling, 25 participants with 15 Bhil and 10 Bhilala women aged 15 years and above were recruited through trained female community data collectors. Findings indicate that 80% of participants had no knowledge of menstruation before their first period; fear was among the most commonly reported first reactions; and all participants perceived menstruation as impure in some form, regardless of educational level. Descriptive cross-tabulation did not reveal a clear pattern linking mother's educational attainment to daughters' menstrual awareness. The Bhilala community demonstrated comparatively higher awareness than the Bhil community. These findings are situated within frameworks of gender theory, social constructivism, and intersectionality, and suggest that cultural taboos persist in urban informal settlement contexts and are not automatically resolved by residential migration alone. The study identifies gaps in community-based menstrual health interventions and proposes gender-sensitive recommendations for urban health policy. Given the small and exploratory sample, findings should be interpreted as context-specific insights rather than generalisable conclusions.