DiDi of Lucknow is not only helping abused and marginalised women find sustainable means of employment; it is making a world of difference to their confidence and selfrespect as well

Last year, Shibani Sahni, director, strategy, marketing and partnership, DiDi, a Lucknow-based organisation working towards gender equality and women empowerment, picked up the Global Sourcing Council 3S People’s Choice United Nations Award in New York. While the award recognised the efforts of the management team of DiDi — comprising Sahni’s mother Dr Urvashi Sahni; Veena Anand, an educator; and, of course, Sahni — it was also significant in its timing. Back home, Indian media was full of reports of two Nepalese women getting rescued from the clutches of a Saudi Arabian diplomat who raped and abused them.

Unfortunately, newspaper reports and electronic channels are full of reports of women discrimination, gender inequality, abuse and violence faced by what many think of as — sadly — the weaker sex. DiDi, then, becomes a vital link in what can be done, and what should be done to alleviate these issues. The success stories are endearing — Sheela, a middle-aged woman with a history of battling physical and verbal abuse at home, is today a professional driver who is securing income for her family, including medical care for her paralysed husband (who, in the initial years of their marriage, beat up Sheela). Monica, another victim of an unhealthy marriage full of violence, abuse, stress and anxiety, is now a capable sales woman. Khushboo, an under-confident girl who got courage and support from the organisation and fought against her family’s unreasonable demands of getting her married off as a child – these are just a few stories in the world of DiDi’s that is “by women, for women”.

Several more stories of grit, passion and respect can be found at DiDi, the organisation that began its innings in 2008. To be sure, the team started DiDi because of the feedback received from several middle-aged women whose daughters studied in Prerna Girls School, also an initiative by the management team of DiDi, which started in 2003. “A lot of women told us how happy they were with their daughters doing well at our school. They wanted the same sense of empowerment for themselves and we thought of utilising their existing skill sets in a manner that they could sustain themselves, earn a livelihood, and become more confident,” says Sahni, who initially worked in the corporate sector but found herself drawn to the social service sector (“it was more soul satisfying,” she says).

Interestingly, Sahni, given her background, used all of her corporate strategies and skills to fuel and spearhead DiDi and other initiatives undertaken by the team. Anand, whom Sahni considers the backbone of the organisation, and her mother, look after the day-to-day operations of the organisation.

What makes DiDi’s work crucial is the manner in which it helps women with sustainable livelihoods. “It’s a ripple effect,” Sahni says, adding, “When we change the life of one woman, everyone gets affected positively. You could say that with each woman, each family gets empowered.” As DiDi works towards the pressing issues of women empowerment, gender equality, community mobilisation, leadership mentoring, vocational training and poverty alleviation, the strategy of its growth (the blueprint of which has been painstakingly made by the management team) is worth looking at. From providing 2,000 meals to various corporates on a daily basis, to providing 800 midday meals to government school children in Lucknow, to even supplying savoury snacks in select international markets and domestic brands such as Café Coffee Day, DiDi is proving to be a milestone in the lives of several women who were earlier tortured, brutally abused and found themselves helpless. Rescued from gender-based violence, many of these women are not only sustaining themselves, they are even going back to the same families and homes with a sense of great pride and dignity.

Sahni defines DiDi as the “universe of care”, where despite several challenges, the core management team is striving to create work ethics and training just the way any multinational company would do. “We are always training them to take work seriously, to report on time. Earlier, there was little sense of punctuality but now we find ourselves gradually ironing out the creases and challenges,” Sahni explains.

In fact, it wouldn’t be incorrect to say that the mission of spearheading DiDi has allowed not just for a movement towards gender tolerance, it has also managed to change destinies of many, and women from very poor backgrounds, for the better. Imagine a girl who was forced to leave studies midway to look after the house and siblings who went on to securing a scholarship in the US for a year-long programme and is now pursuing a business administration course, while also working at DiDi. Or imagine a story of a young girl who saw tremendous poverty but is today managing the finances at DiDi. The organisation is replete with stories of success and achievements.

“These individuals and their families needed one golden chance and we’re glad we could be at the helm of that,” explains Sahni, who confesses that while a corporate career offered her tremendous financial satisfaction, it didn’t fulfill her emotionally. “I wanted to help people and when I saw so many girls from economically and educationally weaker backgrounds, I decided to quit and focus fulltime with the help of my mother, Veena ma’am and my sister,” she says. “The energy in DiDi,” she says, “is positive, full of love and happiness, and the return on investment is amazing.” “As a person, you feel empowered that you can change lives and grow as a person yourself. The ripple effect is huge — DiDi empowers not just an individual, it impacts over 600 families,” says Sahni, who informs that DiDi will soon look at starting a manufacturing unit for low-cost sanitary napkins.

She’s right. When young, educated people take the responsibility to change one life, they impact hundreds and thousands. Motivating many of these young girls and middle-aged women has allowed Sahni to beam with pride. She, along with the team, is happy at the recognition their hard work is bringing to the organisation. Starting with just four women making chocolate biscuits, DiDi now has hundreds of women who have found their second home. “When we say we empower women, it means we allow a dialogue between them and their families. We allow them to be responsible for themselves and being aware of their own strengths. Education allows for growth and Prerna Girls School is doing just that. DiDi, on the other hand, is showing many women practical ways to sustain themselves and spearhead a movement in their own lives,” says Sahni.