She who dares, soars.
Aarti aims to be the wind beneath her wings.
Meet the stars of Aarti Women’s Centre
Our story of empowering women is closely intertwined with the stories of these women who have shaped our goals and motivated us with their courage, strength and resilience.
Nilofer’s journey to independence and empowering her kids
My story started when my father sold my textbooks to buy notebooks for my brother. I was uneducated and dependent on my husband and I sought to do something with myself. When I heard that Aarti Home was starting a tailoring program, I enrolled myself. I had a big backlash from my community - As I came home with Rs.50 every day, people started asking me if I was selling myself. Sandhyamma came to our basti and spoke with our community elders. I persisted inspite of the resistance while many of the women who enrolled with me dropped out. I soon became a good tailor and joined the collective.
My story started when my father sold my textbooks to buy notebooks for my brother. I was uneducated and dependent on my husband and I sought to do something with myself. When I heard that Aarti Home was starting a tailoring program, I enrolled myself. I had a big backlash from my community - As I came home with Rs.50 every day, people started asking me if I was selling myself. Sandhyamma came to our basti and spoke with our community elders. I persisted inspite of the resistance while many of the women who enrolled with me dropped out. I soon became a good tailor and joined the collective.
Empower
Women trained in employability skills
68,500+
Women
Women leaders created
70,319
Women
Support provided during COVID
83
Support
Impact on the community
Our first livelihood training program began in 2001. However, we soon realised this alone would not be enough. Women who came to us were ostracised by their communities and prevented from exploring financial independence. They were restrained from dreaming of a life beyond the one they had. We needed a comprehensive solution for motivation, skill development, opportunity creation, community development and most importantly building confidence.
This collective effort for over two decades has yielded tremendous results that assure us that the numbers will keep increasing!
68,500+
Women
Trained in Employability
6,300+
Women
Trained in Skill Building
5,100+
Women
Trained in Legal Awareness
35,000+
Women
Became financially free
Our Programs
Our biggest focus is on skill development programs to increase the income-generating potential of women, while also providing motivation, creating cooperatives, giving and enabling financial support and counselling.
Skill Building
The skill development programs are geared towards destitute women with very little or no formal education. We have developed curriculum and master trainers across Fashion Design and Tailoring, Beautician Training, Embroidery, Handicraft Training including Toy-Making, Body Massage, Fabric Painting and Block Printing.
Employability Programs
Our employability programs empower educated women and girl students to confidently step into the workforce. We equip them with essential skills such as basic computer literacy, communication and social skills, resume writing, and the foundations of a strong work ethic.
Women Empowerment Program
In collaboration with WEP (Women Entrepreneurship Platform), we have been running WEP centres and building skills amongst young women to not just build confidence but also to lead social change.