Sacred Petals with a Purpose: Crafting Sustainability and Empowerment
By Malancha Sarkar Ph.D.
In Indian households, flowers are used to adorn temples, home altars, during festivities, and by women to adorn their hair—a tradition rich with cultural significance. However, by the end of the day, these flowers are often discarded. India generates over 8 million metric tons of discarded flowers annually, much of which ends up polluting rivers, canals, and other water bodies.
In Kanchipuram, known as the temple town, flowers are central to daily life, from temple rituals and marriage ceremonies to community events. At Hitah Home Goods Pvt Ltd (HHG), headquartered in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, I took the initiative to upcycle these flowers into premium quality incense sticks, preventing them from ending up in landfills or water bodies. This journey began as a personal mission of mine after retiring early from the University of Miami, where I was a faculty member in the Department of Biology. Driven by a desire to make a meaningful impact and leave a legacy, I relocated to Kanchipuram, despite not knowing the local language, to fully dedicate myself to this cause.
The Aroma Project – The Seed of Inspiration
Hitah Home Goods was inspired by The Aroma Project (https://TheAromaProject.Org), founded in memory of my mother, Mrs. Chhobi Sarkar, a lifelong teacher dedicated to education and empowerment. She founded an elementary school named “AROMA.” Her core philosophy of empowering women and supporting children’s education remains a guiding principle for Hitah Home Goods.
Empowering Women and Stimulating the Local Economy
At the heart of Hitah Home Goods is my commitment to empowerment. We provide training and employment opportunities to women from economically challenged backgrounds, helping them achieve financial independence. In many villages, women typically endure seasonal, backbreaking work, often paid less than men and lacking regular hours. My aim is to change this by offering regular work hours that accommodate women’s familial responsibilities while contributing to family income, instilling a sense of purpose, routine, and self-respect. Additionally, their wages are deposited directly into their bank accounts, giving them financial independence. While full-time employment is not yet the norm, we adhere to government regulations to provide social security benefits, including retirement benefits, wherever possible.
Environmentally Friendly Practices
My commitment to sustainability is woven into every product we create. One of our key offerings, agarbatti (incense sticks), is made from upcycled flowers. These flowers, which would otherwise end up in landfills, are transformed by trained village women into high-quality incense sticks. While still in its formative stages, we have already diverted about 5,000 kg of floral offerings and unsold flowers from polluting water bodies and municipal landfills, and we are building our capacity to upcycle 500 kg of flowers per day. Hitah has conducted rigorous research to develop incense sticks with a burn time of over 60 minutes, offering a pleasant fragrance.
In addition to incense sticks, Hitah Home Goods produces 100% natural beeswax candles. Traditionally, after honey extraction, tribal communities in the Ranchi district of Jharkhand would discard the bee hives. I personally trained these communities to sustainably collect beeswax and produce candles while ensuring the bee colonies are not harmed, providing them with an additional source of income. The beeswax is used to create long-lasting, non-spluttering, non-dripping candles with no chemical processing.Hitah prefers beeswax over plant-based waxes, which often take up land that could be used for food cultivation, aligning with our commitment to responsible resource use.
The Meaning of Hitah and the Logo
The name Hitah (Sanskrit, pronounced Hetaha) means ‘beneficial.’ My mission is to create products that are beneficial to humans, the community, and the planet. Our logo, designed in dark brown to symbolize Mother Earth, features a red dot inspired by the traditional kumkum or sindoor worn by women in India, signifying feminine strength, passion, and action. The intricate design on the left is a Kolam, a traditional Tamil Nadu art form created with rice powder by women at the entrance of homes, symbolizing prosperity, creativity, concentration, and compassion for other living beings. This pays tribute to the women who have kept this ancient tradition alive.
Commitment to the Planet and Future Generations
At Hitah, I am committed to harnessing the earth’s resources with care and doing my part to leave behind a thriving planet. By upcycling delicate resources like flowers and employing sustainable beeswax collection practices, we contribute to environmental preservation and reduce waste. Our eco-friendly products, sustainably manufactured in one of the holiest and ancient cities of India, benefit people without harming the planet.
Looking Ahead
As Hitah Home Goods continues to grow, I plan to expand our product range while staying true to our core values of sustainability and empowerment. Part of the revenue generated from product sales will continue to support educational and creative activities for economically disadvantaged children, carrying forward the legacy of my mother, Mrs. Chhobi Sarkar.
How You Can Support
I invite you to support our mission by bringing home our environmentally friendly incense sticks and other products made by women, helping protect water bodies and empower women and children. By purchasing our products, you help divert discarded flowers from polluting landfills and support the livelihoods of women in economically challenged communities. Every purchase makes a difference. Visit https://HitahHomeGoods.Com & https://TheAromaProject.Org to make your home a sanctuary of eco-friendly products.
