In this day and age where women are at par with men and have shown the world that they are capable of equally great things, we want to celebrate women, these strong women who have shown resilience, grit and determination to start their own journey, and this is their story.
One flower at a time
Azhaku Dheeran formerly a home gardener in Tamil Nadu, would follow teachings from working with her father into her own home garden to replenish the soil with his special vermicompost recipe, her garden flourished with a bounty of fruits and flowers and saw the potential of turning vermicompost into a homegrown business.
Initially she faced a lot of hardships to spread the word, people wouldn’t understand the purpose or need for the vermicompost and dismiss the idea. It was the Krishi Vigyan Kendra in Tamil Nadu, that helped take her first step in sales. Eventually during the pandemic, she shifted to e-commerce platforms, with fierce competition in the market, low connectivity and inapt infrastructure it was a struggle, but eventually with high hopes and determinations sales paced upwards slowly, with customers leaving great reviews, the word spread and sales surged, with ups and downs along the way, Aeboreal came into being. Today she sells about 210 kg of vermicompost a month, and has added coco peat and potting mix into her arsenal of products selling across Bengaluru, Chennai and parts of Kerela.
The Power of Genuine Products
Mother and daughter duo Jaya and Parvathy Avanoor, from Kerela founded Purvina as brand that revolves around creating the purest form of virgin coconut oil, preserving age old methods to craft something truly special. Looking at the bounty from their farmland and persuasion from their family and friends, they eventually started making “ventha velichenna’ (virgin coconut oil). Initially they were only looking at working with spices, but this elusive product made way into the list.
The tedious process is not only time-consuming but also difficult to extract. About 250 coconuts make 10 litres of oil. Around 90%percent of their workforce is women who carefully break, shred, milk and boil the coconuts. They make sure all their raw material comes form organically made sources, including their own farmland and neighbouring farmers. The brand sells about 250 litres of oil per month, making it a best seller on Amazon for skincare and cooking purposes.
Virgin Coconut oil has proven have many health benefits and is a supple moisturiser for the skin, the product being so versatile has given rise to its popularity. They also sell peppercorns, turmeric, tamarind paste etc. They are present on all e-commerce platforms, to share the experience of a genuine chemical-free product.
Plastic-free takeaways
Srishti Garg, a young product designer who has created eco-friendly packaging inspired by the classic stack-up steel tiffin. Made with areca leaf bowls, this design is disposable yet eco-friendly, a step towards eliminating the large volumes of plastic and soggy paper waste. It is also a great on the go-tool where one doesn’t have to worry about handling Tupperware dabaas.
It started as an idea from her college assignments that flourished into being a one-of a kind product. The areca nut bowls are easily available, provide alternative employment sources and are biodegradable. She wanted to eliminate any extra fluff in packaging and wanted to keep the product simple, function and budget friendly. While the product is still in its early phases, Srishti wishes to interact with food chains and delivery partners to make the product more ergonomically friendly. Although it is a great move for transporting dry snacks, Dip-in Tiffin wants to venture into working with gravies. It is inspiring to see the youth taking charge for a change in the future.
We have brought these three stories from ‘The Better India’ Organisation and their website. (https://linkin.bio/thebetterindia) We commend these women entrepreneurs for their perseverance, and proudly look up with our women brigade at Ekatra to keep working and creating sustainable products for a better future.