#YesIDidIt A Unique Story Of Grit And Courage

Indumati’s husband had been laid off from his job as one of the consequences this deadly pandemic had caused. She lost her house and her kid’s education was discontinued. In an instant, her not-so-perfect yet sorted and settled life had gone haywire and she felt misplaced and disoriented in the rich tapestry of life.

Indumati with her family moved to her village where they owned an old and run-down house and a piece of land.  Though they did not struggle to meet both ends’ needs, they were far from leading a normal and decent life.

 Her husband engrossed himself in looking for a new job, and she took charge of the kids’ studies and started homeschooling them.

One day while she was taking a stroll in her neighbourhood she heard heart-piercing mourns coming from a cob house. The man of the house had died of corona and the lady survived with two of her kids. They were struggling to make ends meet as her husband was the only earning person. This incident penetrated Indumati’s heart.

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Job loss and loss of life had left the entire village in a state of complete despair and distress. Adversity and hardships had hit every household hard.

One day while Indumati was cleaning her store room, her eyes fell on the sewing machines covered by an old and threadbare and dusty sheet. While the coronavirus has forced people to observe home confinement and travel and shopping restrictions being in effect Indumati started sewing her and her kid’s essentials at home to meet their clothing requirements.

She mended small tears, replaced lost buttons and broken zips and reused the clothes which otherwise she would have thrown away.

 Though she was inept she had absorbed a few basic sewing skills from her mother-in-law who was adept in the field and had a profound knowledge of the intricacies of sewing and craftsmanship. She used to stitch garments for the entire household by herself. She found great joy and satisfaction in sewing. She also imparted free lessons on sewing to women who expressed the desire to learn, when she was alive.

After her death, all the machines were sitting and gathering dust. She just got a few repairs done that they needed and they were back up and running as well as ever.

An idea conceived in her mind. After some time When the impact of the pandemic subsided and restrictions were relaxed, She put all the machines in a room and offered women of the village to bring their fabrics and sewing accessories along and stitch their garments to meet their clothing needs.

When women heard of the offer, they started pouring in with their fabrics and stitching the clothes of their choice and fitting. They were happy to see those old machines in working condition back again. They remembered their good old days when they used to come there to learn sewing from their mother-in-law.

There were no restrictions, everyone came as per their time and did their work. And while leaving, they would give many blessings to Indumati. Indumati also enjoyed watching them sewing and talking to them while they worked there. It saved those women the cost of buying clothes and also kept them engaged and active.

Their sewing encompassed from blouses, petticoats, kurtas, and salwar to nighties and gowns.

Soon the stories of their work started being talked about in their own and neighbouring village. Seeing their excellent tailoring and design friends and neighbours started giving them orders.

Some even started sending in their children to learn the basics of sewing.

Now it was time to take their sewing skill a notch higher. It was time to turn their hobbies into business.

 Instead of working individually, they decided to work as a team, they divided themselves into groups and worked in shifts depending on the orders they received.

The job of taking orders and payments was entrusted to Indumati as she was skilled in bookkeeping and accounting.

They decided to save all the money for the first year so that they could buy a couple of state-of-the-art machines which performed embroidery and engraved other designs on the fabric.  Equipped with techniques and technology these machines sped up their work and made them more proficient and professional.

 Their happiness knew no bounds when they bagged their first big order of sewing all the garments from an affluent family for their daughter’s Marriage. Lahanga, salwar suits, blouses, petticoats and embroidery, they had a lot on their plate. They knew the success of their start-up depended on the completion of this big order. They worked day and night and with their dedication and determination, they completed the order on time. All the stitched garments turned out beautiful and well-fitting.

Their tailoring skill and workmanship won much praise and admiration and brought many new customers on board.

In the subsequent course of time, they applied for women business loans for young women entrepreneurs that the government had started. After going through all the processes and procedures they qualified for it and eventually, a loan was sanctioned for their flourishing business. They celebrated their success and at the same time geared up to face new challenges to take their business to the next level.

Indumati with a few other women attended many workshops to enhance their communication skills and decision-making.

She also attended seminars for the better performance of her team and to keep them motivated and positive.

Those who were unbeknownst and helpless till yesterday had become the talk of the town today. Those who were housewives till yesterday had become the businesswomen today. With their resilience and hard work they brought about a wave of change.

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