Monday 18 July 2016

The K Clothing Family - Part 2


Here is the continuation to our K Clothing Family...



Ramanathan | Age : 53 | Position : Accountant | Been around : 22 Years.

Ramanathan can be seen huddled over a pile of papers and cheque books all day.  He holds one of the most ‘make or break’ positions in the company – The Accountant. His whiz like skills with numbers is obvious from the 22 years experience in the field.  Not being much of a talker, it took quite a lot to get him to talk.  When he did, it was quite obvious why he likes working in accounts. He says it the simplest job on earth. While most of us would contest to that nonchalant statement, Ramanathan puts it very simply. He says, “its not much. It’s just juggling a lot of numbers but keeping them in their place. Only if you don’t know where a number comes from , you’ll find yourself in trouble. Otherwise its all simple.” Yes, he puts it that easily.
Ramanathan talks about his boss (Kaveri) in a revered manner. He talks about how her enthusiasm fuels people to work harder for her, her love for what she does and the way she does it with inexhaustible energy.
He talks about his family with the same enthusiasm. His daughter and son are following his footsteps in terms of career.

Sathya Nandam | Age : 34 | Position : Tailor | Been around : 8 Years.

One of our very talented in-house tailors, Sathya Nandam – often called Sathya by his colleagues is a quiet man, hunched over his sewing machine, looking up only when necessary.  This man with his marking pencil hooked behind his ear, is not pleased to be disturbed. He warmed considerably once we got to discuss his work. Sathya has been a commercial tailor since 1995. His knowledge in tailoring is reflected in the ease with which he handles the machine. When asked how much he enjoys his work, he said, “What is there to not enjoy my job? Each day is different from the other, everyday we get new work and everyday is another challenge.”
He went on to say “I am happy here because I feel respected. Each of our work is given importance here. There are times when we make mistakes and she (Kaveri) gets very angry, but when it’s justified; we work overtime to right the wrong. That is the biggest lesson I have learnt here – to take responsibility for the mistakes we make. “

Khan Bhai | Age : 54 | Position : Machine Embroidery | Been around : 10 yrs.

Niazilizyaqat Ali Khan – more easily known to his colleagues, as Khan Bhai - is a whiz with mechanized embroidery. He spent 10 years in the Gulf, which is where he picked up his skills. He talks about his time in the Gulf and how the designs there are much different from what it is here. When asked why he came back from the Gulf, he said, “ I missed my family. 10 years is a long time to be away. I decided to come back to my wife and children.”
While discussing what he likes and dislikes about his work, he promptly said, “I love embroidery. It comes naturally to me and I love the various designs that I get to do here. My only dislike is when the stress is high and when she (Kaveri) loses her temper. I’ve come to understand and I am now used to it, but it still makes me uncomfortable when there is so much anger around me. “

Mary Basilica | Age: 37 | Position: Tailor | been around: 10 years.


Mary started off with a lot of hand sewing in an export house in Bangalore where she gained most of her experience. She learned that she wanted to be in tailoring for a very long time.  She went to some basic tailoring classes before she started work at K Clothing.  She talks about how proud she is about where she started and where she is now.  She says, “I enjoy a little challenge, and here, every design has a different method. When I look back on where I started, I realize how much I have grown because of this company.”






Pazhani | Age: 39 | Position: Tailor | been around: 7 years

Pazhani is not a newbie to the tailoring field.  He has 5 years of work experience in an export company on Mount Road, Chennai.

When asked why he left that job,  he said, “it was getting monotonous. They were giving the same job over and over and I felt like there was no scope for improvement and growth.”  Pazhani is a determined man. He travels 140 Kms to work everyday. When asked why he prefers to travel that much, he said, “ I enjoy  the work here. It’s very different and fun.”   He says he doesn’t mind working over time because he wants the work to get done on time.  Pazhani goes home to his wife and 2 children.

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