Tradition Meets Technology: Sujita’s Journey of Breaking Barriers and Building Her Future
From traditional clay pot making to a successful entrepreneur, Sujita of Sabaila is inspiring women and girls in her community to challenge social norms and embrace their potential.
Sujita, a resident of Sabaila, participated in the Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship Development (YEED) Project. Through the project, she attended life skills training followed by entrepreneurship development training. Initially, she planned to start a tailoring business. However, the training helped her recognize her own potential and the value of her family’s generations-old experience in traditional clay pot making, a business practiced by her forefathers and father-in-law.
As she explored this opportunity, Sujita identified two major challenges. First, in her community, women and girls from her caste were traditionally not involved in clay pot making. Second, the traditional process was time-consuming and required two people to produce clay pots.
Determined to pursue her interest, Sujita, with support from the project team, convinced her father-in-law that she could use her existing skills and family knowledge to earn an income without leaving home to learn an entirely new trade. She encouraged her family not to be discouraged by social criticism and demonstrated that women could also contribute significantly to household income through traditional occupations.
To address the second challenge, Sujita requested an electric pottery wheel, which made the process faster and reduced the need for two people to work together. With this technology, she could produce clay pots more efficiently and independently.
Her efforts soon brought remarkable results. During just two months of the previous year's festive season, covering Dashain, Diwali, and Chhath, Sujita earned NPR 60,000 from clay pot making through her own efforts.
Sujita’s achievement goes beyond income generation. She has challenged a long-standing cultural barrier, demonstrated how traditional skills can create economic opportunities when combined with modern technology, and established herself as a role model for women and girls in her community. Inspired by her example, other girls in the community have also started becoming involved in clay pot making.
Sujita’s story is a powerful example of how the right skills, appropriate technology, family support, and determination can transform traditional livelihoods into sustainable economic opportunities. By combining ancestral knowledge with innovation, she is not only strengthening her family’s livelihood but also helping pave the way for greater participation of women in traditionally male-dominated occupations.
