Venkat Iyer (left) with Preeti (middle)

Iyer's fortunes may be about to change, thanks to the entrepreneurial vision of a young student of MOP Vaishnav College for Women. Preeti, a design student is now training Iyer to produce eco-friendly designer chappals. "Iyer's skills as a cobbler are remarkable. He used to make low cost chappals for the poor using spare leather strips. That's when I thought - Why don't I source waste cloth material from tailors and we could use them to make trendy chappals?" she explained.

Chappals prepared by Iyer

Iyer has a lot to look forward to in the coming days. The new line of business will get a kick-start when he will participates in the MOP annual bazaar next month, where he, along with his brother, will open shop in the campus and create chappals for students. Preeti plans to price the chappals at Rs 170 each. Iyer is thinking of investing his earnings back into the business, and dreams of becoming a wholesaler someday.

Preeti's innovation plus his own willingness to risk a new venture - the combination could change Iyer's life. Such is the power of entrepreneurship!