12) Courage in the valley

It a chance reunion as I caught up with Lakina in a RAI seminar at the Sheratons. We did our post graduation in Ghaziabad more than a decade and bumping into him relieved those wonderful memories of youth. It’s surprising how quickly the mind becomes young and excited as we traded news.

He had got married to a German and has two kids to show for it as he pulled out the wallet for a dekko. Lakina runs a thriving garment business, exporting to parts of Europe and America. He’s into Kashmiri woolens and markets his products in Canada, United States, Caribbean, and parts of Western Europe. Certainly not bad for a fellow who sat behind me during exams hoping for a sneak look!

In the enthusiasm of meeting him, I canceled my dental appointment and we sat down at a remote corner of the bar that overlooked the Arabian Sea. It was still twilight and thankfully we were amongst the few at the bar. As the night progressed, there was more revelry as the music blared and dancing spotlights came into play.

We were two old friends now in our middle age sharing our experiences of the years gone by. Lakina was excited at the possibilities of his business as I sensed a real passion. Amidst all the brouhaha, this little anecdote stood out.

“Rohit, in the garment business it is important to get quality vendors. In the initial days, I would source garments from Patiala, Kanpur, Uttarachanal and even Nepal before I discovered Khatija Sahiba. She is one of the most courageous women I have seen in my life.

A young widow with 4 children to contend in Kashmir valley; those days the valley was in the grip of heightened militancy.

Life there just didn’t make sense with all those bomb shellings and civilians getting caught in the crossfire. The most tragic part were innocent civilians stepping on landmines that exploded on their faces and limbs amputated.

Here was a young widow with no exposure to the outside world and yet she had to do something to provide for her young kids. All she knew was how to make sweaters and spin yarns. Sometimes desperate situation call for desperate measures: she spun a couple of sweaters and stood in the market chowk for buyers.

Look, it was not easy as she hailed from a conservative Muslim background yet that did not deter her from the business venture. There were many people around who had no gainful employment and soon under her leadership; they started working as an enterprise.

I was one of the first to place an order and for which the lady is grateful even today. Now 17 years later, Khatija employs over 800 women and is one of the most reliable suppliers in the trade. The government has also conferred her best entrepreneur award and her yarns command a premium in the international market.

Just imagine the odds that she might have had to undergo? The agony of losing a husband when so young, the travails of bring up her children, the plight of financial insecurity, lack of any worthwhile occupation, guns blaring right under your ears and yet she found the courage to take a less traveled path and now is a benefactor to society”.

At last I found my voice,” Lakhina, you are right. Life is not about winning or losing but how well you play the set of cards on hand. Even in the most hopeless of situations, there is hope”.