Lalita's hard work pays off

Lalita K Patan, 58, resides in Athani, a small town in the Belgaum district of Karnataka. Lalita is a victim of the devadasi system practiced in the region. She regrets that she lost the better part of her life to this demeaning system. Her mother could not afford to send her to school and being a ex-devadasi, none from her town would employ her. Lalita lives with her daughter-in-law and a grandchild. Her son passed away a couple of years ago which meant no income in the family. She wanted to ensure that her grandchild would not suffer the same fate that she did and was hell bent on providing him good education. To earn enough money to pay school fees for her grandson and to pay for the household needs, Lalita took a loan from MASS, a partner of Milaap to open up a Xerox shop. She opened a small shop with a simple black and white Canon xerox machine. To attract customers, she charged only Rs 1 for photocopying a page. Due to the competitive prices she offered, she got many bulk orders and could save up enough money to buy computers and open up a new cyber cafe. Currently, Lalita owns two xerox shops and a cyber cafe. She has been able to create job opportunities to the sons and daughters of devadasis who are still denied employment elsewhere. Through her dedication, Lalita has come out of the bubble of poverty she was forced into.