Women Weaving Their Own Futures
Wonderful to see my dear friend and former UN colleague Kiran Bhatia, who has been associated with UNICEF, UNFPA and the World Bank, as Chief Guest at Udyamita Sammelan 4.0 in Raipur, organised by Udyogini, which she helped shape as its Founder Executive Secretary.
For over three decades, Udyogini has worked with women at the grassroots — building skills and enterprises, connecting them to markets, resources and financial services, and strengthening communities. Its journey has already reached over one million women, with enterprise development at the heart of greater self-reliance.
What stayed with me from Kiran’s reflections were the women themselves: challenging patriarchy, entering non-traditional work, creating new enterprises and rapidly acquiring new skills, often alongside the responsibilities of home and field. For many, travelling away from home and speaking before such a large gathering was itself a first — yet they did so with remarkable confidence and joy.
It connects beautifully with the spirit of The Sari Eternal — women preserving what is inherited while continually creating, adapting and reinventing.
Like the sari itself, rooted in tradition yet alive with change, these Bharatiya women are weaving their own futures.