THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the next academic year set to begin, 40-year-old Aji Kattakada becomes a busy bee. His home bursts with all kinds of paraphernalia for making bags, umbrellas and such. Every year, during this time, he gets a flurry of orders to make umbrellas and bags, which he fashions out from the confines of his wheelchair. And every year, he introduces an exclusive article which is a notch ahead of the products other brands offer in the market.
This year he has come up with a two-fold children's umbrella, a rarity in the market. "You do not get two-fold umbrellas for children in the market. So I have made lightweight two-fold umbrellas that will fit into their bags," says Aji.
Eighteen years ago, a major accident changed Aji's life. He had been to a friend's place to pluck tamarind. While climbing the tamarind tree, he lost his balance and fell. A fall that confined him to bed for several years. But he chose to fight back. And for the past eight years, he has been regularly involved in making bags, umbrellas and their patchwork. Apart from creating these, he also takes workshops and shares knowledge.
"My father taught me the craft behind making an umbrella. Until the accident, I was never keen on making it or pursuing it as my profession. But after the fall, this knowledge helped me tide over the crisis," says Aji.
All year round, he gets orders for making umbrellas, he says. "The orders come for making beach umbrellas as well. And I also do patchwork for the umbrellas. That was a trade my family was involved in," he says.
Using vibrant colours, he hopes to make it big this time. Because his unit is not just catering to his needs, but the needs of four families. "I make these for four other families. We work as a unit. But since most of them are hospitalised and can't work, I will be creating them and the sale proceeds will be divided amongst ourselves," says Aji. He hopes to get more order this season. "The orders have come, but it is not enough," he says.