Breaking stigma, stepping out of their homes and earning self-respect, rural women are well on their way to creating a niche of their own. By Jigyasu Joshi
“Initially we came across a major hurdle as many families did not allow their women to work outside. They wanted them to stay indoors. But slowly and gradually we see that the picture has changed a lot. Our organisation alone has a working staff of 1,000 women from the nearby villages,” said Durga Devi, director of Sadhna, a women-based cooperative in Udaipur. With an aim of generating income and empowering women in the rural areas of Udaipur, she is part of a business to make handcrafted products out of environment-friendly cotton and silk coloured with natural dyes.
Now working for almost 20 years, Durga shared about how life has changed for her after she started earning for herself. “Not allowing women to work is a social stigma that still stifles our nation, especially in the rural parts. When I got married and moved to my husband’s house, it lacked basic amenities like a toilet. My husband was a daily wage worker and alone couldn’t afford it. However today, not only me but my family, too, takes pride in saying that it was because I worked outside that we were able to afford basic necessities. Seeing us, many families in the vicinity now also motivate their women to go out and work if they want to,” she smiled.
Durga was among women workers who were showcased at a “silent auction” organised by a social enterprise, Women on Wings, to support women empowerment. So there was no bid or hammer but an eclectic and colourful display of what the countryside can do to light up our homes and lives. “Being supported by someone motivates and encourages us to make ourselves financially independent,” added Durga.
Talking about the achievements of her organisation, Durga said, “We are satisfied that we have been successful in making women of our village economically independent. The value of this cannot be estimated by the money they earn but by the other goals they are able to accomplish. Recently one of my co-workers came to me and happily announced that she had finally admitted both of her daughters to a primary school. This is achievement for us.”
Sadhna targets showcasing the local work of artisans on a bigger platform. “Providing employment to thousands of women was the first step. We want the work done by them to garner attention from all over,” added Durga.
Ruma Devi, an appliqué patchwork artisan from Barmer, believes that simply giving employment to the women from rural background is not sufficient. The real work starts after that. “There are many times when the workers are misguided and given less than what their work deserves. For instance, I used to sell my work to exporters in Barmer, not knowing that they were sold at a premium price in the cities. It was through Women on Wings that I now know that what a fair deal is for us. Similarly it is important for me to guide the other women, who are working with me, about the same,” said she.
Also the president of Gramin Vikas Evam Chetna Sansthan that provides employment to as many as 11000 women from the 75 villages in and around Barmer, Ruma shared, “In the beginning, we went to every doorstep in the village urging people to send women from their family out to work and earn. We also made them understand that it was not only about money but self-respect too. It was tough but it did reap positive results.”
She believes that the women in the villages have talent but lack marketing skills. “Women in our village do patchwork and stitch beautiful dupattas only for their family. Now that they have come forward with their talent, products they create are well received in even the big retail stores in the city,” concluded Ruma.
The Netherlands based Women on Wings’ silent auction aimed at bringing together leaders from the corporate world, development, public and private sectors to auction their time and expertise towards advancing the cause of social enterprises.