What else happened during the lockdown?

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is unimaginable. It has put global governments in a quandary, businesses in a fix, and revealed the cracks in social and economic systems that prioritize corporate profit and defense expenditure over health, education, and social welfare.

Besides the lives lost, the uncertainty of the pandemic has changed the long-term plans and made it tricky for most to operate. Even so, many people have forged new paths to stay afloat. Others have come forward to battle social challenges, all by modifying their operations and pivoting to newer opportunities.

While this uncertainty continues, India witnesses a remarking surge that was growing the number of women entrepreneurs, who are also empowering other women to find and follow their passion. Some of the success stories from Kolkata have brought a slight shift in how women are perceived today in society. From distributing 1000 sanitary napkins in a remote area, using social media platforms as a way to run a handicraft business and stay connected, to making sustainable backpacks as a movement against climate change. These women have shown the way to thrive amid a global pandemic and here are some of the good aspects of lockdown:

A group of local college students from Kolkata emerged as saviors during the Covid-19 lockdown for women living near the West Bengal district. With personal savings and contributions from friends, this small group launched a relief operation and gave out 1000 packets of sanitary napkins and baby food to women living in the village.

Where some stepped out of their homes to save others, most took advantage of social media to reach out to people. Such as, for a 42-year-old Shalmoli Chatterjee from West Bengal, it was the year when she decided to take a leap of faith and start her own retail business. A childhood dream to become an artisan jewelry designer that had been suppressed by years of domestic responsibilities. Shalmoli reached out to her target audience using social media like Facebook/Instagram and WhatsApp to get in direct touch with her vendors and target audience. Agreeing with this fact, Madhurima Bhattacharya, who has her label, says social media platforms like Instagram can offer “exponential growth” for any brand. Instagram is the hub for fashion, style, design, and anything aesthetically pleasing.

Another eye-raising event was from self-proclaimed nature lovers who noted that most bags in India are made of polyester or leather, a cruel and chemically-laden industry. Two entrepreneurs, from Kolkata — claiming to be from a “clan of Earth lovers'' — Priyanka Mandal and Broteen Biswas realized, starting a sustainable business will tackle the climate change issue creatively as well as allow them to help financially backward families. The most famous picks from the store are sustainable backpacks, wallets, and pouches from water-resistant cotton canvas.

Therefore, its time when we let women take on the mantle and discard age-old stereotypes, to instill hope, to bring innovation and change, and most importantly, take the place in places as equal – not a woman, not a girl – but as a person who deserves to be here and there!

Platform - Girl Up Alpha

Location: West Bengal, India

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