The tale of Ruma Devi is the stuff of legends.
The 33-year-old has undoubtedly undergone a spectacular metamorphosis from a small hamlet in Rajasthan’s Barmer area to give a talk at Harvard.
Married at 17. Lost her newborn son as her family was not able to afford medical treatment, what would one drive from such an unfortunate incident?!
If one decides to turn around a situation, they can & that’s exactly what Ruma did!
I never dreamt of it, says Ruma, who was invited to talk on micro-companies and the potential of women at the 17th Annual India Conference in February 2020. In fact, I had no idea that I was capable of reaching such a level in life.
“I lost my mother when I was quite young, which had a significant impact on my development. I was made to live with my uncle and aunt while my father decided to remarry. I started learning how to sew and do embroidery [applique work] at a young age, much like many other ladies my age. My grandma taught me how to do this art form, she recollects.
Ruma is a recipient of numerous honors, including the Nari Shakti Puraskar in 2018 given by former president Ram Nath Kovind, and it has helped over 30,000 Rajasthani women craftsmen find work.
She remembers how “bittersweet” it was to receive the email. “I had to think about being asked to speak there for a while. I waited for a whole month, and I didn’t react until I got a follow-up letter from the university,” she explains.
Ruma claims that she wants to further market the handmade and handcrafted goods of the artisans in the Middle East through e-commerce, despite the fact that she has already traveled to Germany, Singapore, Thailand, Sri Lanka, the US, and the UAE to promote the arts and crafts of Incredible India.
Her path to success has been paved by her commitment and desire. Women’s empowerment activists idealize this.
