When you go to a shop to buy cushion covers or quilts do youever wonder where it comes from? Who are the women or men who make them andwhat their stories are? In a small and remote part of Taleigao, with varioussmall lanes leading towards a bright purple building, lives Padma Gopshetti. She sustains herself and otherslike her, through the art of embroidery, patchwork and quilt making.
A native of Andhra Pradesh, Padma has lived in Goa for 20years and started working in a small textile shop in Tonca. Keen on improvingher financial situation, she decided to branch out on her own. With the help ofthe Mahila Mandal in Taleigao she borrowed Rs 10,000 and never looked backafter that. She has been taking ordersfor quilts, cushion covers, sarees, table cloths and napkins ever since. Sherecounts “I have always loved quilt making and being creative. We take ordersfor sarees and make custom quilts for children as well. I supply everythingfrom the raw material to the finished product.”
She now has several women working under her tutelage and takesorders from various establishments like Moti Mahal and Delhi Darbar where herrunners and table cloths have left their signature mark. Her husband is themanager of Delhi Darbar and has supported her and helped expand her contactbase by spreading the word around. She says, “My husband has always been myrock and has helped me get so many orders, that I have had to get help. In turnI have helped other women as well. It’s a system that works as I let them takethe work home and bring it back when they are done. That way they can do it attheir own convenience and it doesn’t take them away from their kids and householdchores.”
When asked whether she will actually decorate her own houseone day she says wistfully, “One day when we buy a house of our own I will makeall the cushions curtains and table cloths myself. I have been saving up mybest work for that day and once I do that I will have accomplished my dream.”
