Solapur
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Bidi industry
Female bidi rollers
Nineteen-year-old Radha Dhanewale is one of the most eligible brides in Maharashtra’s Solapur. Families of prospective grooms arrive at the family’s tiny house every day. It’s not her education, horoscope or income that puts her at the top of the list — it’s a ‘bidi card’ she holds.
“I have rolled bidis with my mother since my school days. A few years ago, I got a bidi card from the factory attesting to my skills. I don’t have to worry about marriage or dowry,” says Radha, showing the piece of paper that testifies to her skills and guarantees employment for life.
Bidi factories issue cards that list the worker’s daily output and skill level. A bidi card means she’ll have regular work with benefits such as provident fund, bonus and medical help. The cards are given only to women who are skilled in bidi rolling. “Getting a bidi card is like landing a government job,” says Radha.
Once a hub for cotton textile manufacturing, Solapur’s importance as a weaving centre has declined. While men cling to jobs in textile manufacturing, about 65,000 women roll bidis for around 200 factories. Rolling bidis requires a high level of dexterity. Scissors and thread are the only ‘tools’ to be used. The women flatten the leaves — tendu or kendo — gently, fill them with tobacco and roll the bidi without breaking a leaf. Women in Solapur have been rolling bidis for over a century, the older ones training the younger.
Radha rolls 1,000 bidis every day and earns Rs 140. The factory deducts provident fund from her earnings. She works from home and delivers the rolled bidis to the factory at the end of the day.
“Most of the girls in the bastis of bidi workers attend school. But there is no guarantee of a job even after graduating. So we start learning to roll bidis,” says 21-year-old Priyanka Madgundi. Priyanka finished Class 12 and says she would have gone to college if she’d been sure of a job.
“Besides the women bidi rollers, about 10,000 people are directly and indirectly involved in the industry. Solapur has highest number of sugar factories in the state, but there is no other employment for women. The bidi cards have made it easier for women to find husbands who do not demand dowry,” says Narsayya Adam, a bidi workers’ leader and former MLA.
Meanwhile, Radha is preparing to meet another prospective groom and his family. The moment they talk of marriage expenses, she will flash her bidi card and that will settle matters, she says.
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