Slice Of Life: ‘I want the whole city to recognise my work’

Chennai

I was born and brought up in Chennai and I started to weave cane baskets to assist my father who was also a weaver. I learnt weaving as I grew up and helped my father after school hours. I studied till Class 12 and wanted to do medicine. But because of financial problems in the family, I could not continue my studies. I tried looking for other jobs but was not able to find a stable income. Even if I was able to find something, the salary would be too low to meet the needs of the family. My wife has completed nursing and she is looking for a government job. We have two children. My children study in a Telugu medium school as we are not even recognised as Scheduled Tribe. The sales are sometimes very good, while other days are bad. I have also started weaving baskets using leather and I wish that these become popular. I am really fond of Chennai as I have seen it change from forests to buildings. I am thankful to the local administration as the police and other authorities have helped us. I want to rise to a stage when people in the whole city should recognise my work and appreciate it. I want my children to study well and get better jobs than what I do for a living.