Ayesha

My father is from Naya and so I was born here. I was given away in marriage when I was 11 years old. My husband worked as a mechanic and took me to his father’s house in Perua. We returned to Naya about 35 years ago and when the cooperative started here. Shyamsundar, a master of scroll painting, encouraged me to join. But I said, “I am too old, I cannot paint and I cannot sing.” He insisted and said, “You can try and at least you can work with clay, make clay dolls and figurines.” I had the desire to paint but could not. I did get my son to paint though and he learned quickly. Soon they took him to fairs and festivals to make and show scrolls. Then Dukhushyam also said, “Try to paint, you can do it!” And so I began to learn with the Samity cooperative. I learned the songs from Rani, especially the Tsunami, and also started painting scrolls. Nobody objected to my working, nobody in my father-in-law’s house painted, not even my husband. My father’s people did not paint either. Maybe in the previous generation, they did. Now our lives are better. There is a lot of joy when all 15 of us sit together with the Samity and hold meetings or just sing. Women’s lives have improved in every direction; there is also more demand for our work. We may have different ideas and argue, but then after discussion, we come to an agreement.