9/100 – A well worn Kantha work saree with a Kalamkari blouse made out of left over material from my daughter’s kurta and matching palm leaf earrings gifted to me by a group of women entrepreneurs in Neerodi village, Kanyakumari district. These women had very small children and hence could not take up full time employment or produce commodities for sale. They spoke to other women in the community and found that there was a demand for large vessels used in functions. At that time these had to be hired from either Nagarcoil or Kanyakumari and were expensive. So the women pooled in money and purchased the vessels and started hiring them out. Our organisation was helping them out to expand and supply all event needs like furniture, fans, storage etc. It is in this regard that I met this group of young women. Their approach with no formal training reitirates the fact that common sense is adequate. You dont necessarily need B school training. They had a two tier pricing system – a higher one for weddings and lower one for deaths. They also had a CSR scheme! If you had a happy event, you could make a small contribution using which they would give equivalent value of goods free for any one who can’t afford. These earrings had been purchased from another SHG in the village ! Proudly wearing a symbol of women empowerment!