- Home/
- With Every Cut, Stitch, And Measure, Tulsi Is Building Her Own Empire
With Every Cut, Stitch, And Measure, Tulsi Is Building Her Own Empire
Written by Team NDTV | Updated: November 24, 2022 11:57 IST
It is a bright and cold morning in Jakhni. A morning that will make one want to slip under a warm blanket, and bask in the gentle sun that has now settled in its spot across the mountains. On this beautiful morning, Tulsi is anticipating deadlines, and work left undone. Tulsi Shah, a woman made of dreams, struggles, and infinite hope. Her life has proved to be much like her name - bitter in experience but resulting in everlasting freshness.
Sharing a slice of her life, Tulsi Shah, Entrepreneur and USHA Silai School Teacher said,
I got married on December 4, 2000. I lived in Badalu till 2019. I had done a lot of work related to rearing cattle and poultry. The situation at home was not very good. I have even worked at other people's homes to earn money.
After spending 20 years in a small village in Badalu and going through a major financial and familial upheaval, Tulsi participated in the nine-day Silai Training Program on November 2, 2020. She started with the bare minimum, saving one hard earned rupee after the other, by stitching her own clothes. Little by little, with practice and perseverance, Tulsi decided to take her first order. Although she doubted her skills at that moment, her first delivery paved the way for a future only few could imagine for her.
Also Read: USHA Silai School Trainee, Metilda Mary Is Teaching New Skills To Tamil Nadu Women
Recalling a lesson from school, Tulsi said,
This is what I have learnt in school that ‘with practice even a fool can become wise, in much the same manner that a rope lowered into a well every day leaves its mark on the stone wall that it constantly rubs against'. You can never succeed until you work hard. I worked very hard to learn everything that we were taught, and to practice it. I earn more than Rs 60,000 - Rs. 70,000 every month. Today, I am earning really well and so I can afford to employ people under me. This estimated earning is after deducting the salary I pay to my employees. I haven't added their pay to this, this is just my personal income.
Tulsi Shah exemplifies the chain impact of the USHA Silai School Training Program that spreads in the country through the Silai School Women Entrepreneurs. She has trained over 70 women in stitching, sewing, hemming, and other tricks of the trade. Having employed several women, she now hopes to expand her enterprise and liberate herself as well as her community. One of Tulsi's many learner-turned-employees is now successfully making a living from the Swavalambhan Silai School.
Also Read: USHA With NGOs In West Bengal Help Women Generate Income Through Traditional Stitching Art Forms
Deepa Shah, Learner at Swavalambhan Silai School said,
Today, my situation doesn't bother me. I keep myself busy with work and I am happy to come here. I make 1-2 suits a day and earn around Rs. 200 - Rs. 300 every day. I earn around Rs. 8,000 - Rs. 10,000 per month. The situation at home was not very good, but Tulsi supported me and I came here to work with her. I am taking care of my children and of my household expenses, and I pay my rent.
Giving out details of the Silai School Programme, Alok Tripathi, Program Coordinator, Uttarakhand, USHA International said,
We have added a life skills chapter to our Silai school curriculum. Now, along with sewing, the women are also learning other important points. Like how to relate and engage with society, how to be more practical, how to increase your business. So, these life skills training has proved to be really helpful for them.
Also Read: USHA-Gram Utthan In Odisha Are Empowering Women To Open Their Training Centres
From Tulsi's mirth, undaunting spirit and energy at work, it is impossible to tell that she is grieving the loss of a son for the past 5 months. She wants to write her own tale and has taken the reins of the business in her rough swollen hands.
Sundown is approaching, Tulsi's students and employees have left, she is still the last one standing. She says to herself, "this suit has to be delivered tomorrow" and "that saree needs to be given for a wedding ceremony". Tulsi must complete her tasks before dusk, for she must keep her word. Tulsi must deliver. Tomorrow shall bring a new set of orders. For Tulsi, every order is an opportunity. With every cut, stitch, and measure, she is slowly pushing herself towards her dream of opening another shop and building her own empire.
Also Read: USHA-Sarvodaya Ashram Are Teaching Traditional Stitching Techniques To Uttar Pradesh Women
Published: November 23, 2022 17:21 IST
Team NDTV | Wednesday April 24, 2024By the end of 2022, for every Rs. 100 invested in the training of women, the Usha Silai School generated an average of Rs. 8,300, reported IIT-Delhi study
- Team NDTV | Wednesday January 31, 2024
The partnership between Usha and the Sewaj Neesim Foundation is empowering women and giving old uniforms a new identity, a new purpose, and a new pride
- Team NDTV | Tuesday January 30, 2024
Among the aims and objectives of the CRPF Family Welfare Association is to skill the CRPF wives and give them a sense of accomplishment
- Team NDTV | Monday January 29, 2024
Renowned for its skill development program in sewing and tailoring, Usha's training cum production centre is enabling the wives of Army personnel at the village level to become financially independent
Do you want to be a part of the huge change that Usha Silai School is bringing about in the lives of millions of rural women? With just a simple click of a button, you can now contribute towards the opening of an Usha Silai School or support various other aspects of the school.
Kushalta Ke Kadam, an initiative by USHA Silai School and NDTV has entered its eighth season. The aim is to empower more women across rural India by teaching them sewing skills and helping them open new doors of opportunities for themselves. The initiative encourages rural women to become financially independent and entrepreneurs by taking up sewing and training others in their respective communities.
Since 2011, the USHA Silai School initiative has trained more than 12 lakh rural women through over 33,000 Silai schools, spanning over 20,751 villages across India.
The women earn Rs. 4,000 – 5,000 per month on an average, with the highest recorded monthly earning being Rs. 84,000 in a month. This earning works as a catalyst towards building their self-confidence, reducing gender inequities, and raising their stature within their families and in society at large.
Kushalta ke Kadam: Aiming for Independence Through Stitching
Rebari girls grow up learning traditional embroidery, which along with their new found sewing skills developed at Usha Silai Schools, is helping them earn a living.
Usha Silai School has empowered many rural women to support their family and send their children to school.
The Usha Silai School, established in a small nondescript village that goes by the name of Kottai, is helping empower people from varied communities.
The all-inclusive Usha Silai School Programme covers the entire nation from hamlets tucked between hills to villages cast by the sea.
Vegetables farmers from the Mizoram hills earn very little given the topography of the area. Usha Silai Schools have played an important part in this region by skilling women to financially contribute towards their households.
Usha Silai School learner Lucy has trained seven other women in her community, helping them to become financially independent.
Women like Kaviben from the nomadic Rebari community are finally laying down their roots as they begin to gain financial independence and thereby stability through Usha Silai School.
Usha Silai School, located in the Gujarat's Bhuj village, is enabling rural women to earn as much as Rs. 2,500-4,000 each month.
Usha Silai School, in association with a Gujarat based NGO called Kala Raksha, is trying to bring about a Silai revolution in Bhuj.
Besides training other women from their community, many Usha Silai School learners have become entrepreneurs in their own right.
With sewing becoming easily accessible and lucrative, the silai schools are also helping revive traditional motifs and designs.