Bihar: Meet Lalita Devi who left her husband’s house with 3 children and now is an entrepreneur exporting ‘Jholas’ 
July 11, 2025
  • Read Ecopy
  • Circulation
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
Organiser
  • ‌
  • Bharat
    • Assam
    • Bihar
    • Chhattisgarh
    • Jharkhand
    • Maharashtra
    • View All States
  • World
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • North America
    • South America
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Global Commons
  • Editorial
  • International
  • Opinion
  • Op Sindoor
  • More
    • Analysis
    • Sports
    • Defence
    • RSS in News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Special Report
    • Sci & Tech
    • Entertainment
    • G20
    • Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav
    • Vocal4Local
    • Web Stories
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Books
    • Interviews
    • Travel
    • Law
    • Health
    • Obituary
    • Podcast
MAGAZINE
  • ‌
  • Bharat
    • Assam
    • Bihar
    • Chhattisgarh
    • Jharkhand
    • Maharashtra
    • View All States
  • World
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • North America
    • South America
    • Africa
    • Australia
    • Global Commons
  • Editorial
  • International
  • Opinion
  • Op Sindoor
  • More
    • Analysis
    • Sports
    • Defence
    • RSS in News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Economy
    • Culture
    • Special Report
    • Sci & Tech
    • Entertainment
    • G20
    • Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav
    • Vocal4Local
    • Web Stories
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Books
    • Interviews
    • Travel
    • Law
    • Health
    • Obituary
    • Podcast
Organiser
  • Home
  • Bharat
  • World
  • Operation Sindoor
  • Editorial
  • Analysis
  • Opinion
  • Culture
  • Defence
  • International Edition
  • RSS in News
  • Magazine
  • Read Ecopy
Home Bharat

Bihar: Meet Lalita Devi who left her husband’s house with 3 children and now is an entrepreneur exporting ‘Jholas’ 

Lalita Devi, is a successful entrepreneur at the age of 42, she dedicates her success to her children. She left her alcoholic husband to make sure her children do well in life

by Subhi Vishwakarma
May 17, 2023, 09:30 am IST
in Bharat, Bihar
The store owned by Lalita Devi (left) and Lalita Devi (right)

The store owned by Lalita Devi (left) and Lalita Devi (right)

FacebookTwitterWhatsAppTelegramEmail

Lalita Devi, 42, a resident of Samastipur district of Bihar did not have a stable married life. Her husband had a drinking problem and with time, the problem only intensified. Married in 1993, Lalita decided to leave her husband’s house with three children in 2000. Cut to 2023, she is a successful entrepreneur and provides jobs to many women like her.

Lalita runs ‘Avinash Jhola Udyog’ in Samastipur. She has a number of women employees and exports the Jhola’s to different states of the country. Her journey from 2000 to 2023 is an inspiring one, this is what Lalita told Organiser on May 16.

‘Jhola’ is a term used in the Hindi belt for carry bags made out of cloth. These bags are used to carry vegetables and stuff.

‘My husband was an alcoholic, I had struggled a lot since the day I was married in 1993. By 2000, we had three children two sons and a daughter, the kids were growing so were the expenses. The attitude of my husband never changed and it was then I decided I will have to get out of the marriage’.

In 2004, she took her children, Avinash (now 26), Nitesh (now 25) and Gunjan (now 23) and boarded a train from Nazirganj station. She had no place to go but still, she boarded the train. She says, ‘It was all destined and I had hope, so it happened’.

Recalling the day she said, “At Samastipur, Gunjan began crying for food, I had no food, nor did I have any money. The city was new, I was lost, had no idea what to do, so I sat down at the station”.

She sat down there and watched people come and go, she did not ask for help from anyone, “But around 5 in the evening, a woman came to the platform selling clothes. Observing us for some time, she finally sat down beside me and asked what had happened. Her name was Deena, she said and asked me mine. Initially, I did not want to recount my past memories and plight that had brought us to this point, but eventually, I did,” says Lalita.

Deena was no less than an angel says Lalita, she said, ‘She will help me and took us to her home. From the next day, Lalita had a job for herself, she looked after Deena’s house, she would accompany her, in selling clothes at the station, in turn, Deena provided, Lalita and her kids a shelter’.

Back then the children were less than 6 years of age. Now, Gunjan lives in Delhi and is a UPSC aspirant, while her brothers look after their grown-up business. Curious to know, how this happened.

Well, after months, Lalita came across a tailor’s shop and inquired if she can work there or not. The owner agreed and called her the next day. This was the first job that provided money to Lalita, so she joined immediately. However, Deena’s house was far away from the tailor’s shop, so she inquired about work in the nearby areas.

“Fortunately, Deena had a relative who ran a hotel that was closer to the tailor’s shop. The mother was elderly and lived by herself, while the sons took care of the hotel. They were looking for someone to take care of the home in their absence and help the old lady. She took me to their house and for a few thousand rupees, I would cook, clean the home, and take care of the old woman. In the evenings, I would go to the tailor’s shop and stitch,” she added.

By 2007, Lalita had earned enough money to start her own venture. The kids did well by themselves and then she rented a shop in the market. It was divided into two, one part used as the shop while the other as a warehouse. The shop sell, Jhola’s (bags), and Lalita would prepare and sell them.

Taking on this project was a hard decision to make, as she was all by herself. Asked, if her parents or brothers helped her during this time, She said, no. She has three brothers and two sisters, the parents are well and good, but a daughter after marriage is not their responsibility, she said.

It was a tough decision, as she could not afford to fail.

The first few months were all about exploring, finding out from where the material comes, how to stitch the fabric for jholas and from where to buy the resources. I had never imagined having a business of my own. But as I started, I began to get excited,” she said. The first few months were tough as she had no sales but then the sales picked up.

Throughout the journey, it is quite visible that Lalita is a fighter and learner, when it comes to her children she would do anything. In her business, Lalita kept an eye on the trends of the market, she kept updating her products as per the demand, her product was available at affordable prices and she would provide delivery services too, these services were not available in the beginning.

The Avinash Jhola Udyog, was officially set up in 2008. For their unique styles and trendy looks her Jholas became the talk of Bahadurpur market.

Lalita’s work was expanding and she needed manpower, for this she hired women. Lalita believes says, she will support women like her who have been abandoned by their husbands and families so that they become self-dependent. Her small business earns a sum of Rs 35,000 per month and for the work, she has hired as many as thirteen women from the nearby areas.

These women not only look after the stitching of the Jholas, they are also a part of the marketing team and lead the supply chain.

About her husband, she said, he never tried tracking them since they left his house. Almost four years ago, her husband passed away. She dedicates her success to her children, who were there to support her. She said, she did all of them for them, ‘they are my power’, she said.

“The same people who taunted me when I left my home, asking, ‘What will you do with no job and three children?’, now look at me and say that I am lucky with how life turned out. I feel proud that I never gave up. I feel happy that even when things seemed to be the worst, I tried harder,” says Lalita.

Topics: Bihar positive storyWoman entrepreneurEntrepreneur from BiharOrganiser positive storySuccess story of a 42-year-old womanAvinash Jhola UdyogBiharLalita DeviSamastipur
ShareTweetSendShareSend
✮ Subscribe Organiser YouTube Channel. ✮
✮ Join Organiser's WhatsApp channel for Nationalist views beyond the news. ✮
Previous News

ST Reservation for Meiteis: Perceptions and Perspectives

Next News

Rahul Gandhi to visit the USA on May 31 for 10 days

Related News

Image for representational purpose only: Courtesy Aajtak

Bihar: Manifold increase in ‘residency certificate’ applications in Kishanganj after ECI begins ‘voter revision drive’

A representative image

Bihar: ECI voter revision drive to continue; SC asks commission to consider Aadhaar, ration cards as ID proof

Screengrab of the video from Mahagathbandhan rally in Patna, courtesy: Opinida

Bihar: Kanhaiya Kumar and Pappu Yadav snubbed by security from boarding van at Mahagathbandhan protest rally in Patna

BJP MP Ravishankar Prasad during a press conference in New Delhi on Wednesday, image courtesy ANI

Bihar electoral revision: BJP slams grand alliance leaders over protest against EC exercise to overhaul voter list

Protest by workers of the Congress party in Bihar: Image courtesy INDIA TV

Bihar voter list revision: Amid smooth progress of ‘SIR’ drive, grand alliance parties held statewide protest

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai

“Formation of Youth Commission in Bihar is historic”: Union Minister Nityanand Rai

Load More

Comments

The comments posted here/below/in the given space are not on behalf of Organiser. The person posting the comment will be in sole ownership of its responsibility. According to the central government's IT rules, obscene or offensive statement made against a person, religion, community or nation is a punishable offense, and legal action would be taken against people who indulge in such activities.

Latest News

Karnataka: High Court issues notice to CM Siddaramaiah’s wife in MUDA land scam

Kanhaiya Lal (Left) and son of Kanhaiya Lal, Yash Sahu (Right)

‘Despite having video evidence.. accused are walking free,’ son of Kanhaiya Lal on stay of film ‘Udaipur Files’

Clippings from the viral video in Bilaspur

Temples targeted during Muharram processions 2025: From Shiv Mandir in Hazaribagh to Devi mandir in Bilaspur

Poster for Udaipur Files

Delhi: High Court stays release of film ‘Udaipur Files’ featuring the beheading of tailor Kanhaiya Lal

Piyush Goyal Highlights India’s Solar Surge and Calls for Energy Supply Chain Resilience

Bharat achieves 4000 percent solar capacity growth: Piyush Goyal unveils Rs 1 Lakh Cr innovation push

A representative image

A Swachh Bharat Success Story: Agra leads urban waste revolution, converts landfill into eco-friendly green landmark

Journalist Rana Ayyub

Mumbai tax tribunal rules Rana Ayyub’s Rs 2.7 Crore COVID fund as taxable income, exposes misuse of donations

Uttar Pradesh breaks records in NITI Aayog SDG report 2023, jumps from Rank 29 to 18 in India index

J&K LG Manoj Sinha

Terrorism will not survive in Kashmir; people have risen against it: J&K LG Manoj Sinha

Khalistani terrorist Harjit Singh Laddi claims responsibility for the attack on Kapil Sharma’s Cafe in Surrey

Canada: Gunshots fired at Kapil Sharma’s Cafe in Surrey; Khalistani terrorist Harjit Singh Laddi claims responsibility

  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Cookie Policy
  • Refund and Cancellation
  • Delivery and Shipping

© Bharat Prakashan (Delhi) Limited.
Tech-enabled by Ananthapuri Technologies

  • Home
  • Search Organiser
  • Bharat
    • Assam
    • Bihar
    • Chhattisgarh
    • Jharkhand
    • Maharashtra
    • View All States
  • World
    • Asia
    • Africa
    • North America
    • South America
    • Europe
    • Australia
    • Global Commons
  • Editorial
  • Operation Sindoor
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Defence
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Business
  • RSS in News
  • Entertainment
  • More ..
    • Sci & Tech
    • Vocal4Local
    • Special Report
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Books
    • Interviews
    • Travel
    • Health
    • Politics
    • Law
    • Economy
    • Obituary
    • Podcast
  • Subscribe Magazine
  • Read Ecopy
  • Advertise
  • Circulation
  • Careers
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Policies & Terms
    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Refund and Cancellation
    • Terms of Use

© Bharat Prakashan (Delhi) Limited.
Tech-enabled by Ananthapuri Technologies