They had only a dream to start with. And they have made their mark in various fields with a never-quit spirit. This International Day of Rural Women, we revisit some inspiring stories covered on Village Square.
Rina Das Baul grew up seeing her father struggle while making a living as a baul singer. Though her grandfather and father were well-known baul singers in the region, Rina, a school dropout from Paruldanga village in Birbhum district of West Bengal, never wanted to even marry one, let alone practise the art herself. Little did she know then that the vocation would bring her widespread acclaim.m
Rina, one of the inspiring rural women, was 13 when her father chose a baul singer groom for her. She was married off against her wishes. But she found a caring and supportive husband in Dibakar Das, who wanted her to learn music.
“I still remember the day my husband bought a harmonium and brought it home, carrying it on his head,” Rina said.
That was four decades ago when society hardly accepted a woman baul singer. Rina slowly took to a liking for baul music and began singing. During tough times she and her husband sought alms by singing.
They slowly gained recognition and began receiving invitations for shows. Over the past 35 years, Rina has won many state and national awards. She has performed in over 5,000 events across India and abroad, including France, Sweden and Portugal.
Learn about Rina Das Baul’s journey here.
Hanjabam Ongbi Radhe Sharmi of Wangjing village in Thoubal district of Manipur has spent her life conserving the art of making potloi setpi – the traditional bridal dress of Manipur’s Meitei community. Her efforts came to the national stage last year when she was honoured with the Padma Shri.
The 90-year-old was born into a poor family. Married at the age of 13, she continued to face hardships as her astrologer husband’s income was insufficient to run their family of five sons and two daughters. Hanjabam Ongbi Radhe opened a small tea shop in her village. She started learning potloi setpi after watching a woman in her neighbourhood and worked with her as an apprentice for five years. She became a full-fledged designer when she turned 30.
“I used to get Rs 150 in those days for making the dress, which took 15-20 days to complete,” she said. “When my husband passed away 40 years ago, the responsibility of running the family fell on me. I worked hard for several hours a day.”
Over the years, Hanjabam Ongbi Radhe, one of the inspiring rural women, has trained several artisans. Though she is happy to have achieved recognition, she feels that the government should give the artisans a monthly pension during their old age.
Read the full story here.
The sky is the limit for Saroj Agarwal of Baleswar gram panchayat in Nuapada district of Odisha. It’s not for no reason that she is known as “drone didi”.
Agarwal, one of the inspiring rural women, is currently the sarpanch of Baleswar gram panchayat, which comprises seven villages. One of them – Bhuktapada – has no road connectivity, and people have to walk several kilometres through forests and farms to reach the panchayat office.
When she became the sarpanch in 2022, Agarwal was moved by the plight of the Bhuktapada villagers.
“There was a differently-abled person in the village who always struggled to visit the panchayat office in his wheelchair to collect his pension,” she said.
Agarwal decided to make life easier for him and spent Rs 60,000 of her own money to buy a small drone with a carrying capacity of 300 gms.
“It can be used to deliver pension and medicines to those who are bedridden and cannot reach the panchayat office,” she said. “I decided to give his pension in cash. The drone made a precision delivery, dropping the money in an envelope to him.”
Now, Agarwal wants to use the drone more often, as and when people need services to be delivered to their doorstep.
Suraj Bai Meena, a 33-year-old mother of two, is an inspiration for many for being the first woman from her tribal community to conduct forest tours.
Meena, who hails from Bhoori Pahari village in Rajasthan, became a forest guide and naturalist at Ranthambore National Park in Sawai Madhopur district about 16 years ago.
“I come from a backward village and the Meena community, which is included in the Scheduled Tribes category,” Meena said. “None of my relatives or neighbours had ever sat in a jeep and gone to a school.”
Meena applied for the position of forest guide at Ranthambore in 2006 because she thought the stipend would help her pursue her education. Supported by her elder brother, she secretly filled out the application form and got selected for the training.
“Initially, my brother would help me sneak out of the house to go for the training. Then he convinced the family,” Meena recalled.
But her problems didn’t end there. The all-men group during the training was taken aback to see a 15-year-old girl in their midst. Many made fun of her. A bigger challenge for her was that she didn’t speak English.
But Meena persevered to overcome the problems and has conducted over 7,000 guided tours so far.
Suraj Bai Meena talks about her life here.
Archana M Siddi, one among many inspiring rural women, is aiming big, and her determination and ambition are giving her ample fuel to follow her dreams. The 19-year-old athlete, born in a small village called Mainalli in Mundgod taluk of Uttara Kannada district in Karnataka, belongs to the marginalised Siddi community. She spent her childhood with her three siblings in an impoverished household. But now, thanks to her skills in javelin, which recently brought her laurels at the national level, she is now eyeing the international stage.
Siddi’s athletic talent was spotted by local coaches when she was nine years old, and soon she was selected for admission in the District Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES) School in Karwar, a residential institute.
“Initially, I used to miss my family a lot. But my parents gave me the required emotional support,” she added. At first, she participated in the shot put and discus throw disciplines. But soon, her interest in javelin also developed. Siddi is now pursuing Bachelor of Arts at Dr G Shankar Government Women’s First Grade College at Ajjarakadu, Udupi.
In June, she represented Karnataka at the Janjati Khel Mahotsav, a sports meet at Bhubaneswar, Odisha, for the Scheduled Tribes. She topped the event in javelin.
She now wants to see herself participating in the Olympics.
Read Archana M Siddi’s story here.
