On November 3, a group of 12 women from Fort Kochi will embark on a six-day bicycle journey to Thiruvananthapuram, spreading a strong message against drug abuse. None are professional athletes; they are homemakers, Anganwadi and ASHA workers, and Kudumbashree members.

Awareness on two wheels

Traversing more than 200 kilometres through five districts, the cyclists will halt at schools, colleges, and public venues to conduct sessions on the rising threat of substance abuse, stage street plays, and participate in folk music performances.

The cyclothon is spearheaded by Keraleeyam — Global Kerala Initiative NGO, partnering with She Cycling and Intus Media, the campaign's creators.

The event launches on November 2, with the ride starting at dawn on November 3 from Fort Kochi and ending in Thiruvananthapuram on November 8 at a public gathering on Manaveeyam Veedhi.

M A Seenath, national project coordinator of She Cycling, heads the squad. “We are watching our younger generation fall into addiction, not realising how deeply it affects them,” she says. “Most of us in this group are mothers. We felt we could reach these children not through warnings, but with love through stories, songs, and conversations. That is what this ride is about.”

The participants are Ruhi, Sunitha Ghafoor, Laila Nisar, Baby Nas, Zainaba, Mumtaz, Trese, Jessy Johny, Rehana, Shabana, and Shamla.

Roots of She Cycling

“Seenath was one of my students,” says Prakash P Gopinath, Bicycle Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram. “During the Cycle with Kochi project in 2022, women in their 30s, 40s, and even 60s, many of whom had never touched a bicycle before, started riding with joy and disbelief. It was beautiful to see cycling turn into a symbol of freedom. When the project ended, many women were still eager to learn, so we continued teaching them. That is how She Cycling began. Seenath became one of the trainers and later, the national project coordinator.”

She Cycling has since expanded nationwide, holding free training camps from small-town lanes to the chilly valleys of Kashmir and Leh Ladakh. “We travel with cycles packed in jeeps, stay five days, and teach women how to ride, and come back,” says Prakash.

The itinerary covers Fort Kochi to Alappuzha on November 3, Alappuzha to Chengannur on November 4, Chengannur to Kottarakkara on November 5, Kottarakkara to Vamanapuram on November 6, and arrival in Thiruvananthapuram on the evening of November 7.

Travelling at an easy 10 kilometres per hour, the group will pause every five kilometres for rest and snacks. Daily starts are at 6am, breakfast at 8.30am, awareness sessions in schools and colleges from 11am to 11.30am, resuming the ride by 4pm until 6 or 6.30pm.

In total, they will visit 14 schools and four colleges.