Manju Rohankar, a B Sc (Home Science) and mother of two kids Soham (who's in the fifth) and Surabhi (who's in the first), is a versatile personality indeed. Being a housewife she has all the time on her hands. Manju loves being the typical housewife but she always wanted to do something at home and not just sit and stagnate. She completed her Home Science with specialisation in the general category. After that she did a full-fledged professional course in beauty care.

``I always wanted to be independent but also wanted to give first preference and quality time to my family. Earlier, before marriage I had done a basic course in beauty care. After marriage I did an advanced course in the same. Then gradually about a year back I started offering beauty services from home,'' Manju says. ``I don't run a professional beauty parlour as such but operate from home and cater to people. I've not yet started any advanced treatments. I'll begin them according to people's response.'' Even average or low income group people come to Manju and don't mind shelling out that extra penny to thread their eyebrows or cut their hair.

Besides this Manju is interested in a variety of other things all of which she does only when she has free time - these include batik frames.

``I made one frame and people saw it and started demanding it. So I do that when I can. In 1986 I had held an exhibition at Bal Gandharva. After that I had even taken classes in batik and Mehendi. Now I even get orders from the US,'' she says, ``I get around 3-4 hours when the kids are at school which I utilise fully. My husband is also supportive.''

While Manju makes up the perfect face, Suniti Abhyankar adds glitter to a woman's costume by her self-designed real and imitation jewellery, which she even makes herself.

``It started when I gifted a mangalsutra to a friend - I had made it all by myself with just Rs 10/- and then when other friends saw it the word spread. I had a good `mouth-to-mouth' publicity. Actually for me it began as a hobby now its become like a full time job. I had never thought of it as business or anything nor had I any special interest. The only thing was I had plenty of time on hand. I got a very good response,'' Suniti says with pride. She has even held exhibits at Tilak Smarak Mandir. And now that her two sons have grown up she has more time on hand to meet people's growing demands. She started around eight back. She has now kept some artisans in Mumbai where she keeps going to collect the real pieces and to pick up new ideas. Her clients include the foursome from the Marathi play ``Charchoughi''.

``There is also a vast difference between the prices in shops and the prices I tag. I have innumerable designs and I also design as the clients tell me to-according to their desire. But in real jewellery I usually try my hand only at precious stones, not gold alone. That's one reason which made me join a course on Gemology at the IMDR so that I get to know more about gems, their source, to recognise them quickly and so on. As for `jewellery designing' I don't think that is necessary, it comes naturally,'' Suniti says.

From good grooming to good cooking. For to reach a man's heart one has to reach his stomach first(!), so we have Sukhada Washikar who makes tongue-tickling pickles, papads and masala. She started doing this in her spare time but for her it was not just a hobby. It was to lend a helping hand to the family. She started taking orders 16-17 years back and about 5-6 years back her business has really got a boost. She has even employed some women to help her.

``At first I had to do everything - right from rolling the papads to drying them to selling them from door to door. It took me six months to get the right recipe of the prefect papad. I feared the outcome. I experimented a lot. Only then I ventured out to banks and offices at lunch hours. Relatives and friends also advertised my products by word of mouth. I had to face a lot of problems as the children too were small, and yet I didn't want to keep them in a creche. Sometimes I just used to feel like quitting but in the end it all paid off well,'' Sukhada sighs.

Papads are her speciality. She chose the papads as its a consumer item - not a seasonal one - it's relished throughout the year. Now she stocks it for orders. She has also held stalls every year at `Tilak Smarak Mandir' and `Madhav Keshav Sabhagriha'. ``I also started supplying to Bharti Bazaar six years back and got a good response. I supply to the Desai Bandhu shop. In fact Grahak Peth stopped taking my products because they sold much more than their own products!'' Sukhada says. She has indeed come a long way overcoming her financial hurdles and earning a special name for herself.

And so all these ladies - so alike yet different from the rest - have made the most of their spare time, their energy and their resources showing us that each one of us is blessed with some gift of our own. A little willingness and some desire can go a long way in bringing out the best in us.