Kiara Powar, diabetes advocate and India’s youngest sports presenter, has doubled down on her campaign #InsulinSeMatDaro following her experience with security at a major cricket event.
Kiara took to Instagram to talk about her encounter with the security at the stadium that was to host one of India’s largest cricket matches. Stopped at the gate, she was told to dispose of her insulin pen if she wished to enter the stadium. In her recollection of the event she talks about how she tried in vain to explain to the security personnel and was told to “dump” the unauthorised object outside before proceeding.
“Both my health and my insulin were compromised due to the sheer ignorance,” she said.
#InsulinSeMatDaro was first launched in the month of November (recognized as diabetes awareness month in India) to raise awareness about the role of insulin in diabetes management, address misconceptions, and promote equitable access to diabetes medication. She sought to have discussions over the physical, emotional and social impacts of diabetes, both for those diagnosed and their caregivers.
However, perturbed by the incident but determined to use it as fuel for her endeavour to raise awareness and rid diabetes of the stigma that surrounds it, Kiara brought the campaign back with renewed fervour.
She urges people to tell their stories of the time they faced similar obstacles and having to choose between essential medicine and a simple outing. Using the #InsulinSeMatDaro as the anchor for the movement, she calls to people to post their stories and tag her.
In the reel posted to her platform, Kiara said “As a diabetes advocate, it is my responsibility to spread awareness on this basic necessity…I have built this platform to raise awareness and the more stories we share, the louder we become.”
Kiara hopes that with this venture she can move to make public spaces in India not just more inclusive and accommodating to the needs of diabetics, but also make them supportive of them. After all, India is the diabetes capital of the world.
For details on the incident, watch the reel on Kiara’s profile:
