The Communication Initiative
Development action with informed and engaged societies
The Communication Initiative

After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. 

Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future. 

On the transfer, co-founder Victoria Martin expressed her pleasure to see this work continue under Wits' leadership, knowing that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction. 

As Wits, we honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades and look forward building from that strong base. This includes co-founders Warren Feek (1953-2024) and Victoria Martin as well as La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA), which continues independently at lainiciativadecomunicacion.com with links to The CI Global site. We are also eager to forge new partnerships and entertain new ideas as we consider how best to contribute to social and behaviour change in our rapidly evolving environment.

If you are joining the International Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Summit in Panama, please join Wits and CILA on Monday, 22 June, to share your thoughts and suggestion for the relaunch of the Communication Initiative. We will be in Pacifica 5 from 12-1:25 for the Refuel, Reflect, and Renew Lunch Series: The Communication Initiative: celebrating a driving force for Communication for Social Change and the way forward. We will reflect on the legacy of Warren Feek and family in creating the Communication Initiative, consider the contributions of CI over the years and then turn our attention towards the future in this dynamic session. 

If you are unable to join us in Panama, we still want to hear from you. Please contribute your thoughts by following this link: https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026 or reaching out to ci_surveys@commint.com. 

You can also follow the QR Code:

 https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026

Time to read
1 minute
Print
a- a+
Published 24 years ago
Last updated 1 year ago
Read so far

Mass Media HIV/AIDS Prevention Campaign in Mumbai's Red Light District

0 comments
This communication campaign was launched to support the work of the Population Services International (PSI) which has been working in the Mumbai red light area since 1991 in HIV/AIDS prevention. PSI has a drop-in centre in the area, and uses social workers for outreach efforts to address the area's population.

The objectives of the communication campaign were to increase awareness and knowledge about HIV/AIDS, and secondly, to increase motivation for condom use. The key audiences were commercial sex workers (CSWs), madams, pimps and customers of CSWs.
Communication Strategies

Because the population in Mumbai is very large and mobile, the campaign was an ongoing, sustained effort with frequent awareness-raising activities. The campaign had to take into account that the clients would reject any message that they perceived as lecturing and moralising, so the emphasis was on info/edutainment.

Cinema halls in the area were booked for popular Hindi films to be shown for free. Entertaining skits on AIDS were performed during the interval between films, and popular film stars would address the audience with safe sex messages. Given the popularity of Hindi cinema, this proved to be a significant draw for the intended audiences.

Also, a photographic mobile exhibition that traveled in red light areas, railway stations, factories, low cost housing societies and crowded markets and streets. The exhibition has been widely seen and has invited hundreds of follow up inquiries.



Another event was the "record dance": stages were put at cross roads in the red light area and professional dancers performed popular dance sequences from films to audiences exceeding 1,000. Between sequences the master of ceremonies would give AIDS messages and distribute information booklets.

An AIDS video titled "Bodyguard" made in the popular Hindi film format was played in neighbourhood bars that the men frequented before going to the brothels. The film spoke of the importance of condom use and demonstrated the correct way to use a condom. (The film won the Best Abby for best public service film 1997 at the Bombay Ad Club awards; and was judged one of the best five films in the last two years from India by the Standing Committee on Advertising). Other awareness raising activities included fun fairs with games and contests with AIDS messages and audio-tapes that are played by the street side cigarette shops.


Other media used include: street plays and tamashas ("commotions" in Hindi), posters, fliers, free samples, leaflets on AIDS, taxi stickers, flip charts and puppet and mimicry shows.

Development Issues

HIV/AIDS, Health.

Key Points

A pre-campaign knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and practices (KABP) study indicated that awareness of HIV/AIDS was extremely low, and that reaching clients was critical. Also, because the population in this area was mostly illiterate, with little or no access to the media other than, occasionally, cinema, conventional media were not generally suitable.

Sources

Research by consultant Nirupama Sarma, 2001.