Parvathi, sangeetha and Girijamma are workers

Parvathi, Sangeetha and Girijamma are construction workers from the Gulbarga-Raichur district in Karnataka.
I approach them to ask if I can take a few photographs, exchange a few words, and they look in the direction of the man seen in the second photograph- sitting with a walker. He then enquires about what I am doing, why I want to take pictures, will it be published.. I explain, while the women work distractedly-lending me half a ear. He gives me a go ahead but asks me to hurry up so that the maestri doesn’t see.

Parvathi (Red saree) confidently estimates her age to be between 40-45. Always keeping her lips sealed for the camera, she reveals a gap-toothed grin when I begin to talk to her. She tells me that she has four children- a son and three daughters, again giving me an approximation of their ages as being between 12-20, adding that one of her daughters works in a factory.
She says she travels across Karnataka as a construction worker, and hurriedly concludes her story here, only to jump in while I was talking to Sangeetha (Violet saree) to say that she came to Bangalore to repay a three lakhs loan made by her alcoholic husband.

Sangeetha is about 20 years junior to Parvathi, and is new to construction work; it has only been a month since she joined her husband in this field. She elaborates that she used to work as a domestic help but had to quit because her pregnancy-caused nausea did not allow her to work everyday. Construction work is convenient, she says, as one can work on whichever days are suitable. I wonder how anything is suitable if a woman into her fourth-month of pregnancy has to carry sand and cement bags-all day long, atop her head, but she too has loans to repay.She hopes for a future when there are no loans.

The man has inputs he constantly makes, feeling like an authority on their stories. He tells me to fill in the same content for Sangeetha as I did for Parvathi, but only helps when I begin to ask Sangeetha some questions anyway. Girijamma (Blue saree) walks in with a curious look on her face, and this time I turn to him for permission to speak with her as well. He says the maestri is going to come anytime now, but does not deny my request. And so, in the frenzy of awaiting the maestri’s arrival, I try to get a sense of who Girijamma is. All the while, the man keeps saying ‘same, same same!’, but Girijamma insists that she is from Raichur and not Gulbarga. Aged 35, she has two sons, both of whom are studying back in Raichur. I ask her what she wants from life, and she says construction work is what she wants to do.

The young face of the Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust, Niska is a dynamic well-travelled advertising professional with a post graduate degree from London, UK. She grew up with the social ethics that her parents and grandparents believed in and even as a young child, used to accompany her mother to the various 4S Foundation projects. As gen next of Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust with a forward thinking global perspective, she is looking to expand the reach of the Foundation into new areas. She feels especially passionately about new-age projects like alternative energy for villages, eco friendly industries and sustainability programmes.

A very successful corporate Image Consultant, who lived in Africa and the Middle East. A personal tragedy, the loss of her surgeon husband, forced her to step out of her secure comfort zone and become a financially independent woman, capable of providing her three children with a secure future. A dynamic Rotarian and Founder Director of The Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust, her goal is to enable young women to fend for themselves and become productive members of society. In a world where so many urgent social problems need tackling, she believes that pooling resources, partnering with like-minded, influential individuals and involving them in social change projects is really the smart way forward.

Subbarao, a highly successful corporate head, also wore many different hats over the course of his illustrious life and career. He was many things to many people. Influential CEO of a multinational company, caring husband and father, Sai baba devotee, composer of popular hymns and bhajans, author of a devotional book and co founder of the 4S Foundation which was later renamed Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust. He passed away in the mid-2000’s but the work he started in collaboration with his wife and daughter lives on.

Lalitha Subbarao is the inspiration behind the Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust. Armed with a strong social conscience and a broad based global education (Masters from Ohio State University, USA) plus a deep desire to help disadvantaged women, her dream is now being realized through the efforts of the Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust. Lalitha was a woman of substance who worked quietly and steadily towards the betterment of those around her. Besides being a role model to her children, she authored and published two books–Nanu Mattu America in Kannada (America and I) describing her student life there in the mid 1950’s and a comprehensive book – Festivals of India. She rightly believed that women must be educated, empowered and financially independent. An educated wife and mother would in turn be a strong positive influence in the family and society at large, just as she was. Her legacy is carried on by the Lalitha Subbarao Nanjundayya Memorial Trust.