Making paneer – the light at the end of her tunnel
Shakeela Jaffar struggled to make ends meet selling milk from her two cows. When her husband’s illness deepened her misery, an order for paneer became a ray of hope that has turned into a successful cheese-making business. Here is her story.
The never-ending work wore me out.
From fetching water for my cattle at dawn to cleaning the cow shed and milking my two cows, from preparing food for my family to collecting fodder in the evening – I was working round the clock.
You know, I felt that I was stuck in a dark well.
It was hard for my husband too. Pushing a cart all day, he sold milk on the outskirts of Srinagar, about 14 kilometres from Odina, our village in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district.
When getting through each day was such a struggle, my husband fell ill, pushing my family into further misery.
Once when I needed money, I had to break my daughter’s piggy bank. It broke my heart!
Life seemed bleak, with no light at the end of the tunnel. Yet, I had an inexpressible hope…
You see, the closure of markets due to a state reorganisation bill and then the pandemic lockdowns proved to be a blessing in disguise.
For a few days our milk was wasted for want of customers. Then we got a request for 30 kilograms of paneer for a religious gathering. It came as a silver lining amidst the dark clouds.
That order was a trigger. The next morning, I didn’t wait for customers. I boiled the milk and made paneer.
Carrying 20 kilograms of paneer on my head, I walked to a village that was about 2 kilometres from my home. I offered it to a grocer with a margin of Rs 25 per kilogram.
Since then, I haven’t looked back.
From producing paneer from only 40 litres of milk a year-and-a-half ago, my business has grown to making paneer and cheese from 2,500 litres of milk every day!
Initially I collected milk from our vicinity, now my husband procures it from nearby villages. My two teenaged girls and my younger son help me.
Seeing me struggle to make ends meet and then doing fairly well in business now, some people have started similar ventures.
Apart from selling in local markets and nearby towns, I cater to large orders for marriages, religious gatherings and individual customers, because everyone prefers home-made paneer.
If the demand increases, I’ll employ women so that they can also make a living.
After a hectic day’s work, I feel quite proud of the way I’ve turned my life around.
Reporting by Nasir Yousufi, a journalist based at Srinagar. Photos Nasir Yousufi and Yulia Ilina, Pexel.