Bandhini is Odser’s livelihood and women’s empowerment initiative – a space where women learn skills, build confidence, earn income, form collectives and take their first steps toward financial independence.
Where women stitch possibility into their lives.
Across Pune’s settlements and surrounding villages, women carry the weight of their homes with extraordinary strength. They rise before sunrise, work through long days, stretch every rupee, hold families together through illness, crop loss and financial strain.
Yet their own dreams remain folded away. Not out of lack of ambition – but because their lives have never allowed space for those dreams to breathe.
Bandhini exists to change that.
This is why Bandhini matters.
Each woman’s journey carries its own landscape.
In many urban settlements, a woman may seek work as a domestic helper or caregiver. It is demanding work, but accessible because homes are nearby. In farming families, even this limited opportunity is out of reach.
Villages lie far from towns.
Transport is unpredictable and expensive. Travel takes hours.
Leaving home early or returning after dark is unsafe, and impossible when women shoulder childcare, elder care and seasonal farm labour.
So a farming household often relies on a single uncertain income —
earning tied to monsoon, soil and markets that shift without warning.
When crops fail, debt rises.
Food becomes scarce.
Children’s schooling wavers.
Women want to earn.
They want to contribute.
They want to support their children’s education and stand beside their husbands
as equal partners in stability.
What they lack is opportunity that reaches them where they are.
Bandhini is not only a livelihood program.
It is a doorway to a life women were told they could never have — a life where they earn, where they stand tall, where they contribute proudly, and where their daughters grow up believing they can too.
Bandhini brings skill training, financial literacy and livelihood pathways into the communities themselves.
Women do not need to travel long distances. They do not need to choose between safety and income.
They do not need to set aside their responsibilities at home.
For years, Bandhini has supported 550+ women, strengthened 30+ SHGs, and helped create 20–30 micro-enterprises across Pune’s communities. But the real transformation is not in numbers.
It is in identity.
It is in dignity.
It is in possibility.
With Bandhini, women learn stitching, tailoring, fabric crafts, product design, entrepreneurship and market readiness. They form self-help groups that offer solidarity and financial strength. They work from their homes or local centres, earning income without leaving their families behind.
How Bandhini Works
A Program Built on Dignity. A clear, community-first livelihood model.
Bandhini is designed for women who cannot travel long distances, cannot leave their families for daily shifts, and have never had access to formal training. The model is simple, local and deeply effective — built around the everyday realities of women.
Community Identification
We begin inside urban settlements and farming communities where women face the greatest barriers to earning.
Skill Discovery & Orientation
Women explore livelihood options based on interest, ability and home realities. Most choose stitching, tailoring, fabric crafts, embroidery or small product-making.
Hands-on Training Inside the Community
Training happens where women already gather — schools, SHG rooms, community halls, homes and local centres.
No travel. No cost. No risk.
Practice & Production Support
Women learn stitching, pattern-making, finishing and small-batch production. They work from home or shared community spaces, keeping the model safe, accessible and culturally appropriate.
Market-Linked Earning
Income begins small but grows steadily as confidence and skill develop. Bandhini connects women to real earning opportunities through:
- Schools
- Corporate orders
- Festive markets
- Community fairs
- Partner organisations
SHG Strengthening & Micro-Enterprise
Women form or join SHGs that build savings, access credit and launch small group enterprises. Collectives offer solidarity, financial resilience and shared strength.
Long-Term Handholding
Women receive ongoing support:
- Design guidance
- Raw material support
- Quality checks
- Pricing and costing guidance
- Order fulfilment
- Market linkages
This ensures women grow sustainably — not temporarily — and do not slip back into uncertainty.
Why the Bandhini Model Works
Bandhini does not create dependency. It builds capability.
A donor-backed program that is scalable, practical and rooted in dignity.
Zero infrastructure cost
Training happens inside existing community spaces, ensuring every rupee goes directly into skills, materials and growth.
Designed for women who cannot travel
Especially for women in farming families who cannot commute to cities. Bandhini brings opportunities to them, instead of expecting them to travel long
distances.
Local, home-based earning
Women can work while caring for children, elders and supporting farm activities.
Market-linked, not hobby-based
Every skill taught is tied to real earning pathways. Women begin earning early, which builds confidence and momentum.
Builds self-reliance, not dependence
Women control their time, their production and their income.
They grow at their own pace — safely and sustainably.
Works for first-generation earners
Most Bandhini women have never held a job.
The model meets them exactly where they are.
Reduces household stress & strengthens families
Even small but stable income can ease financial strain in farmer households and
daily-wage families.
Scalable across urban and rural Pune
Because the model is low-cost, community-rooted and proven, it can expand
rapidly with donor support.
Bandhini works because it respects a woman’s reality
..and builds a livelihood around her life, instead of forcing her to reshape her life for a livelihood.
The Four Pillars of Bandhini
When a woman earns, a family stabilizes.
When a woman leads, a community transforms.
Skill Training Program
Where learning begins and confidence returns.
Women learn practical, income-generating skills, including:
- Tailoring, stitching & garment design
- Bag-making & functional fabric craft
- Home-based products
- Festival & seasonal craft products
- Basic entrepreneurship & pricing
- Digital literacy for micro-businesses
Training happens inside:
- Community spaces
- Schools
- Homes (satellite batches)
- SHG locations
Micro-Enterprise Development
Skill becomes income when opportunity meets support.
Bandhini helps women start and grow small home-based businesses:
- Tailoring & alteration units
- Handcrafted products
- Food-based micro-businesses
- Seasonal & festival sales
- Recycled/sustainable craft products
We support women with:
- Starter kits
- Raw material support
- Product development
- Quality checks
- Pricing & costing guidance
- Marketing & order fulfilment
Self-Help Group (SHG) Strengthening & Financial Literacy
Strong women build strong communities.
Bandhini strengthens SHGs through:
- Financial literacy
- Savings & credit practices
- Book-keeping support
- Bank linkage
- Group entrepreneurship models
- Leadership development
Market Linkages & Exhibitions
Where skill meets opportunity.
Women access real customers through:
- School exhibitions
- Corporate pop-ups
- Community events
- Festival markets
- Bulk orders & custom orders
- Online requests (when possible)
These platforms help women earn confidently and gain visibility.
FAQs
1. Who can join Bandhini?
Women from low-income households who want to learn skills, earn income or build small businesses.
2. Do women need prior experience?
No. Training starts from the basics and grows at each woman’s pace.
3. Where does training take place?
Inside community spaces, SHG locations, schools or women’s homes (satellite batches).
4. Do women receive certificates?
Yes, after completing training modules.
5. How do you support micro-enterprises?
Through raw material support, product development, market linkages and pricing guidance.
6. Can corporates partner with Bandhini?
Absolutely, through CSR funding, exhibitions, livelihood hubs or skill sponsorships.
7. Can I volunteer with Bandhini?
Yes, especially in design, skill mentoring, entrepreneurship training and market linkage support.