With an education up to the 10th standard, Meenakshi worked as a labourer for ₹100 a day. Together with her husband’s farming income, it was barely enough for a family of four — and she remained almost entirely dependent on them. She could only afford to send her son to college, while her daughter’s education had to wait.
In the beginning the vendors would not even let me stand in front of the shops… now they greet me with a smile, offer me a seat and bring refreshments while discussing their next order.
