A ConneXions Artisan Story

“I Never Want to Retire”

There is something wonderful about a woman who loves her work so much that she cannot imagine ever stopping. Jyoti Kayal, known affectionately as Jolly, is exactly that kind of woman. Ask her about retirement, and she will tell you, without hesitation, that she never wants it. Not because she does not deserve rest — but because what she has found at ConneXions feels less like a job and more like a calling.

It has not always been this way. Jolly’s path to this feeling of purpose was paved with limited choices, quiet struggle, and finally, a steady kind of strength that surfaced exactly when her family needed it most.

When the Only Option Felt Like No Option at All

Before ConneXions, Jolly was a housewife from a marginalised community, living very close to where ConneXions is now based. She had received very little formal education — not through any fault of her own, but simply because of where and how she had grown up. And with limited education came limited choices.

The only work realistically available to her was as a maid — a job that, however necessary and demanding, is often not given the respect it deserves in India. It was work, but it was not the kind of work that lets a person hold their head high. And even if she had taken it, her husband’s income alone, combined with whatever she might have earned, still was not enough to meet the family’s basic needs.

Jolly was caught in that quiet, exhausting place so many women find themselves in: needing to work, but finding that the only doors open to her led somewhere she did not want to go.

A Door That Finally Opened With Respect

In 2012, that changed. ConneXions created an opportunity for dignified work — something Jolly had been searching for without quite knowing if it existed. She was trained first in card production, learning a craft from the ground up, with patience and care extended to her at every step.

As her confidence and skill grew, so did her role. She moved into quality control in blanket production — a position that requires a sharp eye, real expertise, and the kind of trust that is only given to someone who has proven themselves. Today, she works alongside around 55 other women who make blankets, each one relying on Jolly’s careful eye to make sure their work meets the standard it deserves.

From a woman whose only option had once seemed to be undervalued, disrespected work, Jolly had become someone whose judgement and skill an entire team depended on.

When the World Shut Down, She Stepped Up

Then came the pandemic — a period that tested families everywhere, and tested Jolly’s in a very particular way. Her husband lost his job. In an instant, the income the family had depended on disappeared, and Jolly found herself as the sole breadwinner, carrying the full weight of her household’s survival on her own shoulders.

It is one thing to contribute to a family’s income. It is another thing entirely to suddenly become its only source, especially during a time when the whole world felt uncertain and frightening. But because Jolly already had a steady, dignified role at ConneXions, she had something many families lost overnight during that period: stability.

Her work did not waver. Her income did not disappear. And because of that, her family had a foundation to stand on during one of the most uncertain periods in recent memory.

“ConneXions has brought hope and peace to my life. I never want to retire.”

— Jyoti Kayal

A Woman Who Lifts Others as She Rises

What makes Jolly’s story so quietly powerful is not just what ConneXions gave her, but what she now gives back, every single day. As someone responsible for quality control, she is, in her own way, a guardian of the standard that all 55 women around her are held to and supported by. Her work touches every blanket that leaves their hands.

And she knows it. In her own words, ConneXions creates opportunities that empower other women too — not just her. She sees herself as part of something larger than her own paycheck, part of a community of women who are all, together, building something steadier and more dignified than what the world initially offered any of them.

That is why she never wants to retire. Not because she does not deserve to rest one day, but because this work has given her hope, peace, purpose, and a role in something far bigger than herself. For Jolly, ConneXions is not simply where she earns a living. It is where she truly lives.

ConneXions is a social enterprise based in Kolkata, India, empowering women from slum communities through dignified work and skills training.

www.connexions.org.in