Shakti on Wheels: A Dream That Finally Began to Move...

Shakti on Wheels: A Dream That Finally Began to Move...

It is not even a week since Shakti on Wheels was inaugurated by Ms.Aditi Tatkare, Hon’ble Minister for Women and Child Development, Government of Maharashtra. The excitement of the launch is just settling, the photographs have been shared, the congratulatory messages have slowed down and the van has begun doing what it was actually created to do, move, reach people and sell products made by women Self Help Groups. In its first three days of actual business, the sales crossed ₹30,000.

For a large businesses, ₹30,000 maybe very little. For me, it brought a quiet smile. Not because of the amount itself, but because it meant that somebody had walked up to our little van, looked at a product made by a woman somewhere in Maharashtra, liked it enough to buy it and take it home. That was the dream which is much older than the van.

Years ago, when I was CEO of  UMED, Maharashtra State Rural Livelihoods Mission ,I had the privilege of working closely with women Self Help Groups. I saw women making wonderful products, spices, grains, pulses, papads, pickles, oils, ghee, jaggery, honey, textiles, handicrafts and much more. We organised exhibitions and melavas to market their products. People came, appreciated the products and bought them. The women went home happy. But an exhibition lasted for about a week or ten days  after which the ladies had to wait for the next exhibition to market their products. Could a livelihood  wait for the next exhibition ?

I often felt that the real challenge before SHG women was not their ability to produce. It was continuous access to markets.Somewhere then, the idea of a mobile marketplace entered my mind. If women cannot keep going to the market, why can't we take their products to where the customers are? I started thinking of a grocery store on wheels. But the idea remained an idea. Like many things in government, there were other priorities and constraints. My assignments changed and life moved on. But the thought travelled with me.

Then came retirement. After more than three decades in government service, everyone expected me to slow down. Some felt why I was getting into all this now? Why wasn’t I  relaxing? And some were worried that I had no experience in retail. Running a shop is not the same as running a government programme, they rightly said. 

I had never run a grocery store. I knew very little about inventory, margins, retail routes, daily sales or managing a commercial vehicle but dreams have a strange habit of ignoring practical advice.

The creation of AnirvedShakti Foundation had already given me a platform through which I could continue working for women. The name itself carries a thought close to my heart. 'Anirved'  means not to lose heart, not to become despondent and to keep going and 'Shakti' of course is strength, energy, the power within. Perhaps, without realising it, I had chosen the two words I would need most for the journey ahead.

I decided to revive my old idea and suddenly I found myself visiting automobile showrooms! After a career spent discussing and implementing  programmes, policies and administration, I was now asking questions about payload, mileage, wheelbase and vehicle dimensions.

I looked at different light commercial vehicles. I climbed into them, looked at their cargo spaces and tried to imagine shelves filled with dal, rice, spices, honey, ghee,  jaggery, textiles and eventually chose the Mahindra Veero.

Booking the vehicle was exciting. For a few days, I was innocent to believe that the job was done. But the real adventure began with fabrication. How many shelves? How wide? How high? Where would extra stock be stored? Where would billing happen? Would bottles remain secure when the vehicle moved? How could we make the interiors functional without making them cramped? There were delays and changes. Meanwhile, expenses kept mounting with the vehicle, fabrication, branding, staff, operations.Every new idea seemed to come with a new bill.

There were moments when I seriously wondered whether my friends had been right.I had just retired. Was this really the time to experiment with something about which I knew so little? The administrator in me was comfortable with plans and systems. This was different. Here I was putting my own resources, time and energy behind an idea without knowing whether customers would actually come. There were anxious days. But slowly, the vehicle began looking like the picture I had carried in my mind. The shelves came up, the branding was completed. And there it stood, SHAKTI ON WHEELS.

I was overwhelmed when  the Hon'ble Minister for Women and Child Development, Maharashtra, Ms. Aditi Tatkare, graciously agreed to  inaugurate  Shakti on Wheels on 4 August 2026,.It was an emotional moment. But what touched me most was that my husband’s elder brother and his wife, well-wishers like Rahul and Jaiprakash and all my friends stood by me.

Some came and purchased products simply to encourage our first steps. Some introduced the concept to others. Some helped us obtain permission to take the van into places where potential customers could access it. Some opened doors to housing societies and institutions.

There were friends who had earlier reprimanded me for taking on this adventure so soon after retirement. They too came among those helping me make it work! Perhaps that is the most beautiful form of friendship. They may question your madness, but when they realise that you are determined to go ahead with it anyway, they walk beside you.

The van started business soon after inauguration and did a business of over  ₹30,000 in three days. .I know enough about numbers to understand that this does not establish a successful business model. Our expenses are still high. There are operational issues to resolve. We need regular routes, better inventory planning, more customers and repeat sales. We have to understand what sells and what doesn't. Quality and supply have to remain consistent. There are many teething troubles. But those first sales mattered. They told me that the idea has a chance. And that is enough for now.

I have also been clear about one thing from the beginning. Shakti on Wheels is not about asking people to buy something out of sympathy for women. That is not empowerment. A customer should buy a SHG product because it is good and come again. 

Our role is to create the bridge to bring authentic products from women producers to consumers, to help improve presentation and market understanding, and hopefully to create a regular channel of sales beyond occasional exhibitions.

The road ahead is long. I would like to see Shakti on Wheels develop regular routes across housing societies, offices and corporate spaces. I would like customers to know when the van is coming and perhaps one day track it, pre-order their favourite products and discover new ones. And yes, somewhere in my dreams, I see a hundred Shakti on Wheels in Maharashtra, in other cities across India.Perhaps thousands of women finding a regular market through them.

But for now, there is one van. It is moving.People are buying. Women are calling. Friends are helping and I am learning. 

This little journey has also taught me something more about Shakti. We often look for strength outside ourselves, in positions, institutions, resources or people but sometimes Shakti is simply the voice inside that says, try once more.

Sometimes it is a friend who helps you get permission to park your van. Sometimes it is someone who buys the first packet from your shelf.

One week after the inauguration, I am still anxious. The expenses have not disappeared. Neither have the challenges. And then came that phone call. Nandini from a Self Help Group in Bhandara called me. She had heard about the van and wanted to know whether her products could also find a place in it? Could we sell them? When could she send them? It was not a dramatic conversation. But there was something in her voice which reminded me of the indefatigable energy in me which she said she had always known. It was as if I had remet and found  myself. I was smiling even as I had tears of joy. As I put down the phone , suddenly, the mounting expenses looked a little less frightening. Someone was waiting for this van.

Not for its colourful branding. Not for its inauguration but only because it was my  project and she trusted that I would make it possible for her and thousands like her who were dreaming of a market. 

Perhaps this is what AnirvedShakti was always meant to be. Anirved, unstoppable,  with a determination not to give up and Shakti in the heart, the courage to begin again.

R. Vimala, IAS Retired, 

Former Resident Commissioner & Secretary, Government of Maharashtra

Founder, AnirvedShakti Foundation

PhD Research Scholar, Centre for Policy Studies, IIT Bombay