April 3, 2023
By Nathania John, Communications Intern
Keystone’s sister concern, the Aadhimalai Pazhangudiyinar Producer Company Ltd, inaugurated their new production centre in Banagudi village today. The opening coincided with our ten-year anniversary celebration and was graced with the presence of 250 people. The production centre has been under construction since November of 2022 and reached completion in time for our celebration.
Established to accommodate more manpower and increase production, the centre will host the work of soap-cleaning and packing, the creation of infused honey, and beeswax wraps. Reusable sanitary pads will be stitched from scratch, as well as cloth bags. Balms, soap production and other packing jobs like coffee drying will take place here. Products sourced from wild gooseberry will be turned into mouth fresheners.
The Tribal Welfare Director of Tamil Nadu, S. Annadurai, adorned the inauguration with his presence. He gave a talk on being inspired by the growth he witnessed related to livelihood work in villages, such as Banagudi. He expressed his desire to extend support to Aadhimalai’s work in the future. Through the government, he vouched to offer monetary support for the women’s group enabling them to purchase machinery and necessary equipment.
Our founder-directors Snehlata Nath and Pratim Roy gave talks on Aadhimalai’s evolution over the years. They also revisited the milestones they have crossed over, beginning from once renting buildings to finally owning them. Robert Leo, a retired member of Keystone, encouraged the attendees to carry on the legacy of wild foods in the Nilgiris, a crucial topic of which Keystone is one of the first ever players. Followed by a walkthrough of Aadhimalai’s journey by Murthy sir (a retired senior member) brought back memories for many.
P. Chandran, a Programme Coordinator, spoke about the process of acquiring the facility and support along the way from the landowners. Shivakumar from the Aadhimalai team communicated the history of the company, from the days of developing the first ever production centre to standing strong ten years later. Another important face of the production centre, Saraswati gave ode to the impact Aadhimalai has had over her life and impact on the community. The CEO of the company Jestin Pauls was an integral part of bringing the vision to life. As the event unfolded, community members were handed the microphone to share their personal experiences of working at Keystone. The keynote speakers including the founders were handed plaques of gratitude, following which Share Certificates were distributed to indigenous farmers by the founders and senior team members of Aadhimalai.
After the speeches and handing of plaques, a fun session with traditional music (known as Aracol) and dance ensued. The participants joined in one by one. Finally, the day ended with a lavish millet feast, boasting five different varieties of millet and the traditional smoking hot bird’s eye chilly chutney. The millets are known as Samai, Thenai, Kutharavali, Varagu and Kambu. The meal left a smile on every face. Our Aadhimalai team hopes that the community in the village continues to extend their support. They also have plans to expand their team, by employing 10-15 new women employees into their family. The goal is to uplift livelihoods for local women in a sustainable way that celebrates their traditional ecological knowledge and appreciates the crucial benefits of native flora.
