Come November, a bunch of men and women from across the globe gear up for a month-long campaign called ‘Movember’ (A Moustache in November = Movember). This endeavour is meant to create a buzz about prostate and testicular cancer — diseases exclusive to men — and generate awareness about them in a fun, non-clinical manner.
Back in 2003, while chatting casually over beers, Travis Garone and Luke Slattery from Melbourne, Australia, joked about the moustache, or ‘Mo’, having gone out of vogue. This dialogue led them to devise a challenge to get their friends to grow a Mo, with the objective of raising funds to spread awareness about men’s health. Inspired by a friend’s mother who was involved in fund-raising for breast cancer awareness, the two began Movember as a vehicle to talk about cancers afflicting men, and also raise funds to support outreach programmes.
Men who supported the cause came to known as ‘Mo Bros’ and the women, who supported Mo Bros or the movement directly, ‘Mo Sistas’. Of course, Mo Sistas aren’t mandated to grow moustaches! Through their participation, however, Mo Sistas facilitate discourse about prostate and testicular cancer. On October 31, all men participating in this movement have to shave off their beards and moustaches and, from November 1, the participants will have to start growing a moustache.
Thereafter, by registering online on the Movember portal, participants get access to a ‘Mo Space’ in which they can edit their profile, download articles and style guides, upload pictures, recruit members for the movement and, most importantly, ask for donations. It’s similar to an online community where one can track one’s progress, meet and interact with co-participants, and thus get further involved with the cause. There are other ways in which the campaign can be popularised offline, too. One can always start a Movember movement at the workplace, or host an event with a Movember theme — a 5km run, hike, or bike ride. The options are endless.
Amal Vartak, a digital marketer from Mumbai, has been a Mo Bro for the last two years. A Canadian friend introduced him to the concept. “This is my third year supporting Movember because I understand the medical concerns men face. By participating, I’m doing my bit to change the face of men’s health.”
It’s understandable when a man goes from clean-shaven to growing a full-blown moustache, the journey is always challenging. Vartak, otherwise clean-shaven for the rest of the year, says the moustache-growing process attracts a lot of bewilderment, stares and giggles. Most are curious to know why he’s growing a moustache, and that’s where the word-of-mouth campaign begins. “With the justification of growing a Mo follows the explanation. This conversation is what leads to awareness, and thus, action.” Vartak, who turns 36 this ‘Movember’, takes great care in nurturing his Mo during the month-long exercise, an activity he takes quite seriously.
The exclusivity afforded by Movember makes it stand out in the face of other health causes. The moustache, a typically masculine feature, has been utilised innovatively to develop a game-changing approach to men’s health issues. Although only 459 Mo Bros and Mo Sistas got on the bandwagon last year, there’s scope for this movement to gather momentum in India, where it isn’t officially present yet.
Nearly 7.6 million people died of cancer globally in 2013. Of these, one-sixth was caused by prostate cancer alone, which is seeing a steady increase in incidence in men over 65. With a higher occurrence rate in developed countries such as the United States and Canada, prostate cancer is gradually seeing an up-tick in Asian countries such as India, where it’s growing at the rate of approximately one per cent every year. In such a scenario, campaigns like Movember serve as an effective tool to mobilise awareness and action at the inception level itself.
The Movember Foundation, which spearheads the worldwide effort, celebrated a decade of the tradition in 2013. With a global fund collection amounting to $559 million, Movember — which positions itself as a campaign to change the face of men’s health — has so far supported over 800 programmes in 21 countries.
While the novelty surrounding Movember entices people to participate, there are certain factors that make participation difficult. After being a Mo Bro for two years, Sandeep Potharkar, a 39-year old operations professional from Mumbai, decided to opt out of the campaign. He was part of a larger group that disbanded eventually and so, he felt it made sense to move on. “Apart from the lot of immediate participants, Movember is little known externally. Also, one’s network plays a key role in disseminating peer-to-peer knowledge. At the core, technology is the enabler for Movember to garner popularity and collect money,” says Potharkar.
Vartak acknowledges raising funds is difficult, but he isn’t deterred. “With a great moustache comes great responsibility,” goes the adage, and in keeping with this thought, he proposes to continue being a Mo Bro and bring more people into the fold of this unique effort.
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