This time Holi is on the same day as International Women’s Day; what better way to put two themes together than by sharing a story of perseverance, excitement, and hope. It is a story that started two decades ago in the dusty village of Daulatabad and continues unabated, demonstrating that developmental works initiated with love and grace, owned by champions, drove the lessons learned to enhance their individual and collective journeys towards better living conditions.
Many cynical thoughts appear and disappear while working in the social or development sector. Some of the most prominent questions are “whether a project will last beyond support? Will the project be sustainable? It is stories like this that are fuel to continue the work that so many of us do daily, and that’s the sole purpose of many lives.
Creative Sansar is a social enterprise working on bringing organic Holi colours to society. At the heart of this work is the employment of women in villages of Haryana and safeguarding the health of those who play Hol i by providing non-toxic options.
A self-help group started two decades ago and, through multiple interventions, is at the stage when it aspired to become a social, for-profit enterprise. It is a fruitful culmination of all efforts that preceded the birth of Creative Sansar.
In 2004, SNS Foundation intended to do women empowerment-related work in villages of Haryana. Ms. Indira Vardarajan heading SNS Foundation, remembers the first entry to these villages as rather dramatic. In her words, “Our ‘first-contact’ with the dwellers of Dharampur, a quiet and cozy village nestled amidst the contours of beautiful green fields of Gurgaon, Haryana. Little did we know back then that we were starting something that would change this village’s very destiny. All for good, of course!
What makes the story so interesting every time it is told is the drama that unfolded when we first tried to enter the village with our proposition. We were a group of 3 ambitious functionaries who had mustered enough courage, after a lot of deliberation amongst ourselves, to venture into a random village of complete strangers, hoping desperately to lay out a radical idea (at least back then) to who we did not know, and find acceptance! What we found was pretty strong resistance! Probably, that is how it had to be. That is how the process of ‘changing norms’ starts. Especially when they are rooted in the very foundations of an ancient societal fabric. And, as I said before, it also makes a great story to tell when it’s the time to celebrate success! We circumvented the resistance with sheer determination. We persisted and kept trying with patience and humility. That is the only way to pass the test of sincerity. And we did! Once the trust was won, we knew we had to succeed!”
The goal of the SNS Foundation was to empower women. Marginalized women in villages are at an entirely another level of the already complex problem of women not being generally empowered. The challenges here are way more stubborn and seemingly insurmountable. It was not an easy battle to fight. The strategy was to create ‘Sustainable Opportunities’ for women to have an additional source of income for their households.
SNS Foundation believed that Economic upliftment makes way to social upliftment. Women feel more empowered and confident when they directly contribute to the family economics; and thus, their roles change in the societal structure. Besides, the community itself achieves much higher levels of prosperity and well-being, which otherwise would have never been possible. The sum of all these ensures a much better equipped future generations of both genders. It is no secret that wonders happen at all levels of society when women transform and take the lead!
The solutions have to be meaningful, befitting the time profiles of women who would be transformed, which included choosing appropriate training, skill sets. The training began with colours and did not take much time! And what a colourful way to bring social change! The idea was to create natural and safe alternatives to the unreasonably dangerous chemical-laden colours used in the festival of Holi. The colours were prepared from plant-based ingredients such as turmeric, beetroot, tesu flowers, henna, sandalwood powder etc. Discussing the rationale for natural colours with the women, to the trainings, preparation, packing, branding, marketing ideas, putting up stalls in companies to explaining to the consumers the need to switch to sustainability- the journey was filled with enthusiasm and fun.
Kuldeep Ji, a persistent warrior in this fight against social and environmental wrongs, continued the work when the funding was pulled back. He enthusiastically introduces his daughter, Anisha, who is young and determined to take the journey to the next level. Anisha says, “We tend to be so conscious about what’s in our cosmetic products. And rightfully so! We are aware of the kind of damage they could potentially do if the wrong ingredients are used. And we do not mind paying a heavy premium to ensure we get the right thing. But the same level of sensitivity curiously did not exist when it came to choosing the right colours to play Holi with which is used more liberally than cosmetics all over the body, including eyes – and also although children are most vulnerable to this since they are the most enthusiastic! This idea ticked right all the checkboxes in our list. We were so happy to start Creative Sansar in the year 2020!
She happily adds, “Today, we have more than 40 women from several villages who have found a way to self-reliance and empowerment through engaging in multiple handicrafts works, jewelry, and other organic products for each occasion, including making Holi colours , Handmade Rakhis, Organic Candles, Diwali diyas, thorans & bandarwars, etc. and much more, through Creative Sansar.”
Nivedita, who was a part of this initiative when SNS Foundation started this work and has worked closely with Kuldeep ji, says, “Working with the village women `ecopreneurs’ on preparing natural Holi colours was exciting and still brings back fond memories (after 18-20 years). Each of these women has a great story of transformation to tell, many of whom had never had the chance to sell any produce directly to consumers, the process was very empowering. The confidence, which came from inner conviction on the need to switch to natural lifestyles, was very visible in the way they eagerly interacted with the consumers who flocked to their stalls. It is a great sign of economic sustainability that these women continue to produce the natural colours and to sustain their livelihoods without any handholding support. Their financial inclusion has enabled them to invest in their children’s education and empowerment, particularly their daughters. One cannot miss the aura of the incredible hope and enthusiasm around them.”
Kuldeep ji reminds us that there are a host of corporates in the likes of M/s. Maruti Suzuki, M/s. Hero Motorcorp etc., generously supporting our initiatives and only motivates us more.
The path is clear to us! These initiatives carried out with the right spirit continue in their own way.
As the magic spreads and more women join the initiative, they are making the world a little bit better. And it is heartening to see how society wants to embrace and help initiatives like theirs with a sense of responsibility. Growth and prosperity are meaningless until they reach the most underprivileged sections of our community. Creative Sansar is now a proven model for a mechanism to efficiently market and monetize the valuable skills like the ones that the women of Dharampur and surrounding villages have mastered over the years, and thus be a channel of wealth distribution at the most grass-root levels. Meanwhile, SNS, now headed by Dhamayanti and team, continues its endeavor with more vigor than ever to enlist more and more women, and empower them to assert themselves with a profound sense of self-reliance, confidence and freedom. It is also now heavily focused on skill development programs for youths in order to ensure an early intervention in terms of equipping them for a good start of their careers. Of course, there is a long way to go. But at least we know they are headed there. For now, let’s celebrate the spirit of humanity through the colours of Holi – safe and organic and support such a noble cause and idea!
Creative Sansar’s goal is to empower many more women across the surrounding villages. The more orders we receive, the faster we can reach the goal.
To support this cause and for ordering Organic Holi Colours , kindly write to creativesansar08@gmail.com or contact Ms. Anisha on Mob no +91 8882888553.