Samaj Pragati Sahayog

Kumbaya was started to empower women with the art of stitching. It has been more than 20 years since the day women from Neemkheda village saw patchwork cushions made out of old clothes at SPS. The next day, building an earthen dam in the scorching sun with head loads of clay, they said they wanted to learn how to stitch.
c9835e 5268fc00bb3e4a068793c35baf3bb5c8 scaled - Samaj Pragati Sahayog - SPS

The unique significance of Kumbaya is that these products are made by women from one of the most remote, backward and poor regions of India, because of a new skill and employment opportunity introduced in a predominantly agrarian region where there have been no traditional marketable crafts. Kumbaya has four centres in different villages where employment is available and guaranteed, for almost 300 days in a year to over 80 producers. Today over 1000 women in 70 villages have learned stitching. Apart from the producers who work regularly with us, hundreds of those trained stitch from home. Kumbaya is also deeply committed to disabled women and men, whose inability to contribute manual labour in an agricultural area like ours leads to their marginalization and abandonment. The most rewarding impact of Kumbaya has been including them as skilled producers and high earners.

Kumbaya has been supported by Samaj Pragati Sahayog all these years. Started as a project for the economic empowerment of women, it is now an established and viable social enterprise, struggling to keep up and fast outgrowing its resources. The idea of having a producer company was to hand over the ownership, management and responsibility of Kumbaya to those who participate, benefit and have stakes in this economic activity. On the 24 th of July 2015, Kumbaya Producer Company Limited was incorporated (KPCL).

Films

Aari Embroidery

Language: Hindi and Nimari

This film is about the ancient craft of Ari embroidery in India, shown through the story of Shahid, a young exponent of the art, who works with Kumbaya.
Kumbaya is the brand name for machine-stitched ready-to-wear garments, home linen and accessories designed to market specifications and made by women from one of the most remote, backward and poor regions of India. It is supported by Samaj Pragati Sahayog (www.samprag.org), an organisation working on natural resource management, livelihoods, microfinance and empowerment of women.

Watch the film below

For Further Enquiries

Nivedita Banerji

Email: samprag.core@gmail.com

Call : +91 7271 275757 / 275550