Kalpana grew up in a life of poverty. Her father did the grave mistake of marrying her into the wrong family. She suffered from domestic violence; the trauma of the torture was unbearable and she tried to take her own life. Her life was saved, and her father motivated her to find a purpose. Today, Kalpana runs multiple companies with a turnover of 3000 crore.
Mumbai: It is fairly easy to accept defeat when faced with difficulties. But there are people like Kalpana Saroj who cross all the impediments to wave the flag of their victory. Let’s find out how Kalpana established an empire of 3000 crore.
Early life
Kalpana was born in the year 1961 in Akola district of Maharashtra. Her father was a police constable with a monthly salary of Rs 300. She lived in a joint family with her grandparents and uncles. The whole family lived in the police quarters, but the income was insufficient to carry out all expenses.
Following the customs of that era, Kalpana was married off at the age of 12 to a man ten years older than her. She was physically abused by her in-laws; within 6 months of the marriage, Kalpana’s father brought her back home. It was quite painful for Kalpana to listen to the scorn of her fellow villagers for being separated from her husband. Everyone would try to blame her for her poor condition.
Kalpana found it impossible to recover from the trauma. People’s harsh comments on her became unbearable and in unfortunate circumstances she decided to take her own life. She consumed three bottles of bedbug medicine. Her family immediately brought her to the hospital, and her life was saved.
Post that incident, Kalpana’s father encouraged her to find a purpose in life. When she turned 16, she moved to Mumbai and her relative got her a job at a cloth mill. She earned a monthly sum of Rs 250 for the thread work in the mill. Step by step, Kalpana was trying to bring her life back on track.
Sister’s demise
Suddenly, Kalpana’s sister caught a disease and could not be saved due to lack of money and medical facilities. Kalpana was devastated but she decided to save up more money to help her family members maintain good health.
Idea of business
Kalpana needed Rs 50,000 to start her own business, but no bank would permit her to take a loan from them. So, she decided to form an organization that would provide information about government schemes to people.
Within a few months, she was able to gain a lot of customers. After gaining some confidence in the public, she could take a loan from Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Yojana under the government of Maharashtra. She opened a furniture shop at first, and gradually expanded to boutiques and beauty parlours.
Second marriage
After her business took off, she married with a steel trader from Mumbai. She had a daughter and a son from him. Her husband died in 1989.
During the same time, the Supreme court gave the rights of a Spring tubes company to the workers; previously it had remained shut for 17 years. The workers contacted Kalpana for some sort of help; she was able to pay off all the debt of the company by the end of 2000. Later, she became the owner of the same company in the year 2006. The annual turnover of the company is Rs 3000 crore.
Padma Shri award
Kalpana owns shares in many other companies. The government of Maharashtra has renamed two roads in Mumbai after her name. Kalpana has also received the prestigious, Padma Shri and Rajiv Gandhi awards.
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