41: A conversation with Sumita Ghose, Founder Rangsutra on building a sustainable social enterprise

A conversation with Sumita Ghosh, Founder Rangsutra on building a sustainable social enterprise: Sumita Ghosh my guest on this episode of The Elephant in the Room podcast is the founder of Rangsutra - a social enterprise working with artisans in rural India. A Fulbright Scholar and the recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship for Leadership, Ghosh set up Rangsutra with a goal of bringing about socio-economic development and inclusive growth to rural India by engaging both the community and market. But, the venture almost didn't take off because a leading public sector bank refused to give her a loan since she did not have collateral. A determined Sumita raised the seed funding from a 1000 artisans who she had worked with in the past. Today, Rangsutra is co-owned by 2000 artisan shareholders along with Ghosh, Social Venture Capital Fund Aavishkaar and Fab India's Artisans Microfinance. Sumita's ambition for Rangsutra is to be a global brand but also to show the world that there is a way of doing business, which is good for all. In India the partnership with FAB India and IKEA who have a similar value system has helped Rangsutra to grow from strength to strength. Listen to her Sumita speak about her journey. 👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾 "I swear by the waves of the sea and seashore, that we will change the warp and the weft of society. And this change can only happen if it begins with you. You have to be the change you want to see the world and the world will change accordingly". This song by Kamla Bhasin, developmental feminist activist and poet is the inspiration for these women artisans engaged in bettering their lives.

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The Elephant in the Room Podcast is a curated safe space to have uncomfortable conversations about the pervasive inequalities in society and our workplaces. The idea of the podcast was born from my sense of conflict about identity, self and the concept of privilege and fuelled by my own need to understand how my overlapping identities and experiences had impacted and would continue to impact my life chances. Two years ago I decided to ‘opt out’ to find my own purpose and focus on passion projects including learning about the systemic biases that are endemic in business and society. The Podcast is my very own listening project, a step towards being more intentional in my learning. The Elephant in the Room Podcast is for people who want to be a part of the change, for those who want to step up & speak out, for those who want to learn more about biases, barriers and best practice, for business leaders and for individuals, anyone who is interested in a fairer, more inclusive and compassionate society and workplace. Each week I will interview inspiring speakers from across the world on issues that are taboo and deserve to be mainstream including(but not limited to) systemic and institutionalised racism, discrimination based on further eight protected characteristics, poverty, mental health, climate change. The podcast will also talk about cognitive inclusion, culture, purpose, ethics and the importance of empathy, cultural intelligence and how conversations on identity and disadvantage would be incomplete without considering intersectionality. With the podcast I hope to share stories of people with lived experiences, stories that may have never been told, stories that galvanise us to take action for change and keep the conversations alive by raising the decibel on issues of inequity, inequality in our search for a fairer and more inclusive world.