“If one is willing to work, nothing is beyond reach,” they say, and perhaps that is why humans were blessed with hands long enough to shape their own destiny.
Some lives don’t just endure hardship, they rise from it. Like a phoenix, a woman from Neyyattinkara has proven that no matter how many times life tries to break you, you can still rise, stronger each time.
Ramakumari Amma, a 70-year-old entrepreneur from Amaravila in Neyyattinkara, is a living testament to resilience. She has faced some of life’s harshest challenges, yet never allowed herself to be defeated. Her guiding principle has always been simple but powerful: to live without stretching her hand out to others, even in the face of adversity. Today, at 70, she continues to run her small business with confidence and determination.
Her life was never easy. From a young age, she encountered numerous struggles. Like many, she dreamed of securing a government job, believing it would bring stability and relief from hardship. She worked hard toward that goal, but fate had other plans. When that dream did not materialize, she did not give up. Instead, she started a small bakery on her own. Gradually, life began to settle into a rhythm, and things started improving.
But just as stability seemed within reach, a major trial struck, cancer.
Everything she had built until then was lost to medical expenses. Around this time, she was also navigating motherhood. She gave birth to her elder daughter in 1997 and her younger daughter in 2000. Shockingly, her illness was diagnosed just a week before her second delivery. After undergoing a cesarean section, she had to face a breast surgery merely 16 days later. Treatment followed, long and exhausting. Her bakery had to shut down.
Yet, this was not the end of her story.
Despite battling breast cancer and enduring personal losses within her family, Ramakumari Amma refused to surrender. With unwavering determination, she took a small loan of ₹2,000 from Kudumbashree and began making sweets at home. She would go from shop to shop, selling her products herself. It was through this phase that she truly learned the trade of baking and business.
Slowly, her efforts bore fruit. Her business picked up. With the income she earned, she built a new house and ensured both her daughters were married well.
Today, Ramakumari Amma drives her own Omni van, selling homemade snacks across Neyyattinkara and nearby areas. She stands as an inspiring example of what self-belief and persistence can achieve. Even at 70, she continues to push forward, undeterred by the challenges life once threw at her.
What began as a small step, driven by necessity, has now become a source of immense confidence. It is this very confidence that keeps her moving ahead, proving every single day that resilience is not about surviving once, but about rising every single time you fall.
