Bhubaneswar: 27-yr-old Laxmipriya with a towel on her shoulders and a soft smile on her face, is busy preparing the ‘kadak-chai’.
The girl with work-friendly tracks and tees exuberates self-confidence as she serves ‘bun-maska’ along with ‘kulhad’ tea to her customers.
A IT executive by profession, Laxmipriya works with a Gujarat-based software company. The young woman has started this entrepreneurial venture for earning some extra bucks (in this inflation-stricken economy) and also live her passion.
The small, yet cosy stall named ‘Chai Meri Jaan’ with a tag-line ‘A healer For Every Soul’ will catch your attention immediately, with two girls behind the counter.
The stall is located on the busy Cuttack-Puri road here, bang opposite to the Reliance Fresh outlet. A small stove, containers to prepare tea, some bun packets, butter, and maggi packets can be seen on her small stall. Laxmipriya is helped by her younger sister Bishnupriya, a B-Ed, looking for a job.
“Everyone can do a job but everyone cannot be an entrepreneur,” was one of the most inspiring statement during a chit-chat with her. Her tea stall provides kadak ghar-wali chai with bun-maska and masala maggi.
The eldest of four siblings (three sisters and a brother), this IT professional from Kakatpur, a small village in Puri district of Odisha has bigger dreams. She wants her younger siblings to study and get good jobs.
“Marriage is not on my cards right now. My father is ill and my brother is in 10th standard. I have so many responsibilities. One of my sisters have just completed her BEd and has applied for jobs at different places. But, you know today’s job market. It’s so difficult to get a decent job. The other sister is in college and my brother is still in school. I have to see that they get good education and then settle down in their lives.
“My parents have supported me all along, however my relatives still do not know about it. I don’t know how will they react? she wonders sheepishly.
“I have to earn money for my family. They look up to me and I have taken it up as my responsibility,” she added while preparing tea.
To make her ends meet in this country gripped by unprecedented inflation compounded by low salary structure, her day starts with giving private tuitions to a school kid in the morning, which is then followed by her 9 to 5 job, and the evenings are to pursue her passion to build up a business.
The work from home concept has come to her aid as she can pursue both her job and her business, without any obstacles.
When asked why she chose Bhubaneswar, she replied, “There is good network in the hostel I live, which is unavailable in my village. And I have done my integrated MSc in Electronics and Telecommunications from BJB College, so it’s easier to start my entrepreneurial venture on the streets of Bhubaneswar.”
Why tea stall, and nothing else?
“Tea in India is more than a beverage. It works as a healer for every soul. We find coffee cafes and corners, but good tea still eludes Bhubaneswar streets. Moreover, the investment required was very less in comparison to any other business set up and most importantly, it did not require any extra skills.”
One of her main inspirations was the graduate chai-wali of Patna, Priyanka Gupta. “If she can do a full-time stall, I can at least start it as a part-time venture.”
Laxmipriya then served us with piping hot fresh tea with bun roasted in butter.
Her dedication towards providing her family a decent life is praiseworthy, but does working 16 hours a day really solves her problems is a matter of true concern.
