From a landless laborer to a crorepati business woman

The story of a 55-year-old Kamaltai Pardeshi from Daund is enough to inspire a movie on her. This lady from a village of Kutbao rose from being a farm labourer to establish a Rs7-crore factory funded by NABARD. If not laying foundation for her business ventures, then Pardeshi is busy helping women and farmers become self-dependent. Her latest act being helping farmers' wives from Pune to set-up a food stall in an ongoing exhibition in Thane.

Born in 1961 in a poor family, Pardeshi is the youngest of her four siblings. Since her parents were poor, she, along with her three brothers, received no education. "I started working with my mother on our farm at 12 and after I got married, I worked on my husband's farm," said Pardeshi, who is in Thane with her masala (spice) stalls at the Maharashtra Bazarpeth exhibition held at Gaodevi ground in Thane west, which will go on till April 24.

Since her husband's farm was a barren land, they took to tilling on other farms to make ends meet. But her calling to work for the society from her childhood days made her inquisitive and explore the world of business that could also empower others. "I learnt about mahila bachat gat (women savings group) and for the first time stepped into a bank to open an account," she added.

Though sceptical about opening the bank as she was not sure if she would be considered worthy to open one, she was taken by surprise when the bank staff replied in the affirmative. "It was me and nine other women and we received a loan of Rs10 lakh from Maharashtra bank to start our business," she said.

With just Rs 300 in her pocket and the will to improve her family's condition, which includes her three daughters, she opened a small masala manufacturing unit in 2000. Almost close to two decades, today she runs a factory with 200 women and is in talks with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) to start her masala factory.

"My dream is to export organic masalas abroad, where raw materials will be sourced from farmers," she explained.

While pursuing her entrepreneurial goals, Pardeshi also ensured that her fellow farmers also enjoy the benefits of her knowledge gained through years of experience and struggle. Hence, when she came to exhibit her factory's products at Thane's exhibition, she arranged for a food stall, where women from her village could cook and earn some money.

"After we come here, I realised that we were dependent on the canteen or hotel food which is quite expensive. So i asked the organisers if i can call in women from my village who will make authentic and delicious food," she says.

After their assent she immediately asked Swati Chavan and Nalini Gaikwad to pack their bags and come to Thane. Today these women are cooking and serving delicious bhakri pithla, bharli vangi, thecha and other maharashtrian food at the stalls and doing a good job of it. "We have never stepped into a train alone but when Kamaltai asked us to come here we took up the opportunity," says Swati.

"These women and their farmer husbands are not poor but caught under bad circumstances. They have four to five acres of land but are suffering due to drought," says Pardeshi.

And carrying her social streak ahead she appeals to all the event organisers in Mumbai, Thane and elsewhere to allow these women to put up food stalls at their events. She says that working at these stalls will help these families to be self sufficient for next three months till they start farming again. "I have 2500 farmers to come and cook food at your stalls. These farmers do not need your donation. They need an opportunity to earn their livelihood respectably. Today if we take care of them for two months, tomorrow they will take care of us for the entire year," says she.