Black Spinel Beaded Heart Anklet from India, "Gemstone Love"

Since childhood, Rituu has been drawn to the rich history of Indian jewelry, particularly that of her native Jaipur. She married into a family of jewelry artisans who, for generations, have passed their skills down from elder to younger. Rituu's husband encouraged her to create her own jewelry and she persevered, learning all she could. She now has a workshop where she teaches traditional jewelry making techniques to the people who work with her.

Rituu is a powerful woman who learned the rich jewelry-making traditions of her husband's family and turned them into a thriving workshop. In spite of the crippling effects of osteoporosis and other bone ailments, Rituu works through her pain and shares her knowledge with others. Through the great success of her jewelry, she has been able to hire a number of other artisans, most of whom are women.

Novica sales account for much of Rituu's income. They have helped her to survive a health crisis and to grow her workshop. She is now one of Novica's most successful Indian jewelry artisans. The stable income that Novica sales bring has profoundly impacted Rituu's life and the lives of her workers.

Rituu has struggled to overcome the crippling effects of osteoporosis and other bone ailments. It affected her work for a number of years but her determination has driven her forward and she has rebuilt her jewelry workshop in spite of her chronic health issues.

Rituu's husband encouraged her to start designing and crafting jewelry on her own. She has steadily grown her workshop and is now able to provide full-time employment to other artisans, most of whom are women.

When Rituu started her jewelry workshop, she joined Novica. She has steadily grown her project as is now able to employ several full-time assistants.

Rituu Agarwal has received 2 microcredit loans with 0% interest from Kiva and Novica, the first for $2500 and the most recent for $2900.