From a farmer life in Nepal to a loom in north India

Dolly Devi is from the countryside in Nepal, her family supported themselves as farmers and she have never went to school. Her family consisted of her parents, brothers and one sister. In the age of around 15 she started to have trouble with her hands, she loosed touch and they also got stiff. Leprosy. Her father send her to some relatives in Punjab, India, were she was given some treatment for about six months. From there her family and relatives arranged a marriage with a man who also hade leprosy. The man lived and worked at KKM in Dheradun so she also moved to KKM.

Since then, for about 30 years ago, she have been working and living at KKM. The first year she worked with the first steps to make the yarn from cotton. After that she was tought to weave on the loom and have been working with that since then. She had no working experience expect working on the familys farm so this was totally new for her and she learnt the new job step by step.

Lilian and Dolly Devi at KKM.

- I liked the place immediatly when I came, she says.

She and her husband got three children, two daughters and one son, which all have moved out now. One of the daughters are married, the son is studying. They come to visit sometimes. Dolly does not remember how long time ago she got married and moved to KKM but it must be almost 30 years soon she says beacuse she have a daughter that is around 27 years old.

An ordinary day Dolly Devi gets up and prepare breakfast which is often chai (tea) and bread. After that she starts to work, in the summertime 7.30 am to 11.30 and then a lunch break to 1.30 pm and ends the day at 17.00 pm. On the wintertime the working schedual are from 8.00 am to 11.30 with a lunch break then from 1.00 pm to 4.30 pm. The lunch is prepared by themselves in the home. They work full days monday to friday and half day on saturday.

- I am happy here and that we get everything that is necessary, house, food, a work, the childrens school fees and some pocket money, says Dolly.

I ask her if there is any improvements she would like to see in the colony and if she see herself stay there also in the future.

- No, what would that be, my loom is were it is and I can not move it, she says laughing but in a sense of confussion by what I mean. Loss in translation or just satisfied, that I can not judge.

-And Where else would I go?, She says smiling to the question if she see herself stay in the colony.

Text by: Lilian Sahlin Translation by: Noel Das Photos by: Youdon Tsering

- I think it is mostly to Germany, France and Italy....

Mukesh Lal working on the loom. Picture by: Lilian

- I was working out on the field in my village where I lived and worked with agriculture with my family, and my arm started to swell. I went to see a doctor, he did not say anything about what was wrong, but he suspected leprosy. Then I started to have problems and lose touch in my right hand. Then I came here to get a proper investigation and found out that I had leprosy, that is how the story started about how 26 year old Mukesh Lal ended up at Brahmapuri leprosy colony.


Dondhup Dolma that works for IM-SOIR taking pictures of all the elderly people that getting old age support and Mukesh with his youngest daughter.

Mukesh have stayed in the colony now for ten years, is married and have two daughters one of whom attend school in Rishikesh about four kilometers away. The second one is only two years and stays at home. It is only Mukesh right hand that is affected of the leprosy. His wife do not have leprosy but has a skin disease, leukodermi. She have been living with Mukesh in the colony for six years. Mukesh came to the colony by his own choice, after seven years of schooling in his home village, Theri. He knew the colony because his grandfather, that now have passed away, lived here before but had already returned to the village in Tehri when Mukesh got here. The benefits of living in the leprosy colony is that he is getting medicine regularly, and there is a safety and security in that he knows if he would be worse and they will take care of him and for him to hospital. Of course he adds, that it also a good opportunity to get a occupation and a shelter.

- I am feeling much better now and also got back some sensibility in my hand, he claims.

A typical day Mukesh get up at 6 am and help his oldest daughter with her homework before school. There are three school children who attend a school in Rishikesh from Bramapuri leprosy colony, none of them have the disease. The parents share the responsibility to get the children to school. The school is a governmental school which is about 30 minutes away on motorcycle. The school fees is 10 INR a month that is paid by the families. After the children have been sent to school Mukesh starts to work. He is working with a little bit of everything in the colony, dying the wool and cotton, working with the loom, wash the cotton and wool and packing the finished products and more. After looking at Mukesh in his work you can also notice that he is a helper in that sense that if anyone of the others have any trouble he is there to help them out.


Mukesh Lal helping a older working colleague that got some trouble with the loom.

Mukesh finish his work about 7 pm working, he says, or latest by 7.30 pm . He works everyday except Sunday. His spare time he cleans the house and perform other households chores, find and collect firewood and of course taking care of his two daughters. He have a postive attitude and infectious laugh.


Food distribution that occurs once a month in the colony.

Mukesh earns around 700 INR a month and his wife earns around 650 INR a month. But then they also get the housing, water and electricity from the colony. Also the food is provided by the colony and is rationed once a month. Mukesh have learned the occupation during his years at the colony and did not know the occupation before he moved to the colony. When I asked if there is any improvements he would like to see in the colony connected to the work or his private life he smiles.

- We all have dreams but they will not be fulfilled, he says.

I insist that I want to know them anyway.

- I wish that my children had a school closer to our home because it is difficult to travel there during the monsoon period when the roads gets very bad, he answers after a little thoughtfulness.

Another part that he see as significant is that they need toilets in the colony.

- The lack of accessible toilets are a major problem, we go out in the jungle, so it would be good if we could get that!

When Brahmapuri was built is was situated quite far away from the city and other human settlements but now it is coming closer and closer to the colony. Right now a major road and a bridge over Ganga is being built, and it already exist a big road above the colony. This means that the places to go to do their toilet chores is decreased. He also states a wish to have a resource person who takes care of the elderly. As it is now and the younger and those who are capable assist the ones that need help, such as shopping and collect firewood, but it is not always they have the time needed which has been increased when there becoming more and more elderly people in the colony who needs more help.When I ask about who the consumers mostly is then he is nt completelly sure but says that he knows that they export al alot.

- I think it is mostly to Germany, France and Italy, he says smiling but with a sense of doubt in his voice.

Text and photos by Lilian