Hyderabad: Stitching success story at sweet sixty

Hyderabad: You are never too old to follow your dreams. Ask Uma Maheshwari, who survived a heart condition, fought cancer and lost her husband to Covid but still fought back and turned into an entrepreneur at the age of 60. Maheshwari had confided to her daughter Ritesha that she wanted to make handmade presents for […]

Hyderabad: You are never too old to follow your dreams. Ask Uma Maheshwari, who survived a heart condition, fought cancer and lost her husband to Covid but still fought back and turned into an entrepreneur at the age of 60.

Maheshwari had confided to her daughter Ritesha that she wanted to make handmade presents for Ritesha’s wedding. The mother and daughter, who were already running a handcrafted clothing brand named Ahaira Project, collaborated and there has been no looking back.

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Maheshwari started making small things at her home such as ikkat bags, placemats, coasters, rugs and soft toys with a fabric scrap from the Ahaira production unit, and Ritesha started selling the handmade products under her brand Ahaira.

“My daughter supported and funded me. We made several trips to factories and weavers to learn about various arts and fabric-making processes. I believe age shouldn’t stop you from doing what you like,” Maheshwari said.

Recalling her childhood when she used to stitch school bags from old bedsheets, she said they used to make clothes for newborns by hand and give them to neighbours with newborns as there were no zero-size clothes in the market at that time.

“Even my mother-in-law used to stitch pillow covers from old bedsheets and sarees. They would not let a piece of fabric go waste. That’s how I also learned. I also watch a lot of YouTube videos and learn new things every day,” she said.

That is not all. The mother-daughter duo are employing families affected by Covid through their brand. “Many people lost their livelihood due to the virus. I lost my husband too. We wanted to help people. So my daughter funded the company and we started the Ahaira Project. We created employment and helped our employees get back on their feet,” Maheshwari shared, adding that they were providing scholarships to six children as well.

“I was surprised to see the response from people. It encourages me to do more. We are now planning to sell my products abroad too,” Maheshwari said, adding that they were also working with We Hub, the first-of-its-kind and only State-run platform for women entrepreneurs.