Mistresses of local spice, Nayan Khadapka

Modest interiors and rich authentic Konkani flavours, Kokan Bazar at Dadar stocks over 150 food products from the Konkan belt — all supplied by 125 women from the region. Some of them are divorced, some widowed, and others looking to achieve financial independence by putting to use their raw culinary skills.

The bazaar was started by TISS graduate and former marriage counsellor, Nayan Khadapkar, 53, in January last year. “Having worked for the welfare of women in Mumbai for all these years, I wanted to do something for rural women,” says Khadapkar, owner and manager of Kokan Bazar. So, she started with her hometown Govari. “For women, economic independence is must. But I don’t want to preach the Gandhian economy; I rather show them Gandhi on currency notes, and a way to multiply money by putting their skills to use,” she says.

Five years back, Khadapkar bought some land, built a house, started visiting frequently and interacted with the locals. Later, she approached self-help groups and through them identified women she would train in dishing out staples to help them become financially independent. Khadapkar also approached local food units and promised them she would market their products in Mumbai if they hired women trained by her.

All this wasn’t easy. “Initially the mothers-in-law opposed the idea of their daughters-in-law stepping out of their homes,” she says. To add to that, her swanky car, Western attire and a pedigreed dog made the villagers suspicious of her intentions. So she “switched to saris and Punjabis”.

Things really began to move when Khadapkar roped in the mothers-in-law. “I proposed a 5,000kg jackfruit chips project and asked the oldies if they could help with the chopping for Rs5 each.

That’s how they understood the logistics and warmed up to the idea of entrepreneurship,” she says. The final icebreaker was the temple that Khadapkar helped the villagers build, with donation from her husband.

Today, the hard-to-convince mothers-in-law are proud of their daughters-in-law, who gladly supply stock to Kokan Bazar. Chutneys, papads, salted dry chillies, poha, Konkani fish masala, mango pulp from Ratnagiri, kokam and lemon juice, Malwani masala, mango, lemon and amla sherbets, nariyal wadis, nachni bhakris, dried shrimps and various flours — the bazar has it all, wooden toys from Sawantwadi included.

The clientele is not limited to Maharashtrians. “We have a lot of Gujarati and Parsi clients,” says Sharwari Mhatre, 41, a staff member. Mhatre works at the shop till 3.30pm and in the evenings, busies herself with making special ginger, methi and flax seeds chutney at her Lower Parel home that are also sold at the shop. “Working at the shop helps me learn the ropes of marketing, accounting and handling clients,” she says. Her future plan includes opening up a little chutney business that employs other women. And, this goes well with Khadapkar’s plans, wherein one woman employs 10 more, starting a chain run by women entrepreneurs.

Dipti Kolwankar, 40, from Kankavli, is a case in point. She started by making urad dal papads. Kolwankar needed money to support her family after her husband suffered a paralysis attack. Today, 25 other village women work with Kolwankar, happily rolling out their signature papads that sell under the brand name Disha Papads.

“I hardly made profits when I started. Today, I am able to pay a salary of minimum Rs1000 to the women who work with me,” she says. “It’s a great feeling to bond with women who are working for their financial liberation.”

Besides Kokan Bazar, these women have successfully made inroads to other regional markets like Nashik, Kolhapur and Goa. “They have also begun to set up stalls at places like ST depots and railway stations,” says Khadapkar. As an afterthought, she adds, “At times, they keep me waiting for an order because they have already sold off their produce.” But she isn’t complaining; this is exactly what she set out to do — help these skilled rural women turn into confident entrepreneurs.