“Bring them forward — they are the true VIPs
Mahendra Tripathi, Executive Director of Lamberti India
People
Stories
- She Dares
- community
- Diversity and Inclusion
The Real VIPs of Rural India
Reading time: 2 min
Who are your chief guests?
This is a question I often hear whenever we organize an event.
My answer is simple: the real VIPs are already here — the women leading change in their own villages.
Recently, we inaugurated a new embroidery training cluster in Isharwala, a small village next to Ramsar Palawala, the birthplace of our She Dares program. What makes this moment special is not the presence of outsiders but the leadership of two extraordinary sisters — Seema and Mamta.
Seema, once a trainee of our very first She Dares batch in 2021, started her journey with a quiet determination. She trained herself in embroidery, built her confidence, and chose not just to uplift her own life but to carry the dream forward. She went door to door in Isharwala, talking to families, convincing women to join, and laying the foundation of the program in a new village.
Her sister Mamta, equally skilled and deeply committed, now takes on the responsibility of training the next group of women.
Together, they are not just artisans — they are leaders, mentors, and community builders.
At the inauguration, something remarkable happened. Seema and Mamta, along with other women leaders, sat on chairs in the center of the gathering — shoulder to shoulder with men. For many, this may seem ordinary. But in these villages, it represents a profound shift — a break from generations of social norms where women were rarely given space, voice, or recognition.
“We are not followers anymore. We are leaders.”
This is the essence of sustainable development. Not quick fixes, not dependency, but change that is slow, steady, and rooted in community ownership. What began as a nonprofit-led effort is now becoming a women-led movement, spreading from one village to many more.
At PANS, we are simply the enablers.
The vision, the strength, the resilience — it all belongs to these women.
They are the changemakers, the ones who are rewriting the future of their villages with dignity and courage.
Images from the inauguration
