The Crafts People
Working in Blue Mango Helped Me Rebuild My Life
Muthumari, escaped from being imprisoned by her husband for 59 days and has found a new life working in Blue Mango Trust, Tamil Nadu, S. India
My name is Muthumari and I came to Blue Mango in February of 2013 to work as an accounting assistant. Three months before that, I married a man who locked me in a room for 59 days, demanding ransom money from my family. One day, I managed to escape into a neighbor’s house and used their phone to call my family. When I told my father about how my in-laws had been torturing me, he brought me home and helped me start the divorce process. We want to put them in jail.
It’s hard to get justice. The only thing the police managed to do was to return my birth and educational certificates. Without these papers, I am unable to prove my identity and my job qualifications. I live with my parents now and they fully support my two court cases. The first is an application for a divorce that will also return my dowry. The second is a formal complaint to seek justice for how they treated me. Things move slowly in the judicial system. AHM Trust is helping me with the complaint process.
The ordeal changed me. I became terrified to speak to people and of angering someone by making a mistake. I had stayed at home all by myself and it was horrible because enclosed rooms brought back the memory. My father was the one who told me to join Blue Mango. He said that it would help me to rebuild my life. This is a good place to work. It keeps me busy and the friendly atmosphere helps me forget about what happened for a little while. Talking to people is easier now, though I still get scared. All I want from life once all this is over is to forget about those 59 days. I crave peace.
Muthumari
Sep 2015
MESH buys soft toys, bead jewellery and fashion accessories from Blue Mango Trust where Muthumari works.
My name is Muthumari and I came to Blue Mango in February of 2013 to work as an accounting assistant. Three months before that, I married a man who locked me in a room for 59 days, demanding ransom money from my family. One day, I managed to escape into a neighbor’s house and used their phone to call my family. When I told my father about how my in-laws had been torturing me, he brought me home and helped me start the divorce process. We want to put them in jail.
It’s hard to get justice. The only thing the police managed to do was to return my birth and educational certificates. Without these papers, I am unable to prove my identity and my job qualifications. I live with my parents now and they fully support my two court cases. The first is an application for a divorce that will also return my dowry. The second is a formal complaint to seek justice for how they treated me. Things move slowly in the judicial system. AHM Trust is helping me with the complaint process.
The ordeal changed me. I became terrified to speak to people and of angering someone by making a mistake. I had stayed at home all by myself and it was horrible because enclosed rooms brought back the memory. My father was the one who told me to join Blue Mango. He said that it would help me to rebuild my life. This is a good place to work. It keeps me busy and the friendly atmosphere helps me forget about what happened for a little while. Talking to people is easier now, though I still get scared. All I want from life once all this is over is to forget about those 59 days. I crave peace.
Muthumari
Sep 2015
MESH buys soft toys, bead jewellery and fashion accessories from Blue Mango Trust where Muthumari works.