Accordingly she is described as the original “Slumdog Millionaire” of India. She was born to a Dalit family, she was subjected to all kinds of injustice and being a girl only added to her miseries and she was married away at the age of 12, faced mental and physical abuse at the hands of her in laws.
Reportedly she attempted suicide after being ostracized by the villagers. Meanwhile at the age of 16, she moved back to Mumbai to live with her uncle. Furthermore she started working in a garment factory to support her family and after using government loans for scheduled caste people, she successfully started a tailoring business and then a furniture store.
Moreover she went on to build a successful real estate business, and came to be known for her contacts and entrepreneurial skills. As per report she was on the board of Kamani Tubes when it went into liquidation in 2001, and after taking over the company, restructured it and brought it back to profit. Apparently Kalpana Saroj was awarded the Padma Shri for Trade and Industry in 2013. Moreover she was appointed to the board of directors of Bharatiya Mahila bank, a bank primarily for women, by the Government of India.
