“I have been doing this work right from my childhood. We do different kinds of designs with coconut leaves and bamboo — right from the marriage mandaps, home decor, baskets, chairs, stools and many more. It’s our ancestral skill. I had shifted here to Hyderabad from our hometown Srikakulam to make a living 26 years ago.

I had studied until class 3 but education wasn’t a priority back then in our family so they taught me this work, hoping it’d be a good profession for a living. Well, I must agree that this was a good profession to practice before Covid 19 pandemic but we were severely impacted due to lack of orders ever since Covid 19 struck the country. We literally had to rebuild everything from the scratch.

Yes, things have changed over after COVID but I am only concerned in earning a living at the moment. Come what may, I want my family to lead a better life. I will continue to work hard until that day comes!”

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