However, operating on a shoestring budget has meant that most of Manushi work is done as a labour of love. We have neither been able to pay writers nor editors, proofreaders, artists, lawyers and others who contribute their time to Manushi. We believe it is time to review our policy and strategy with regard to Manushi’s financial support base. While we have managed to ensure a high degree of independence and autonomy, the self imposed compulsion to work on a very small budget has meant:

We invite our readers to suggest innovative ways of fundraising.

At any given point, the group of individuals working regularly on Manushi have had limited skills and resources at their command. The fluctuating nature of voluntary work means that these skills, too, are not always available to us. However, what could have been a liability has become something of strength in that we have developed a habit of drawing on the ideas, skills, experience, and ability of anyone and everyone who happens to be available at any given moment.

What started as a desperate measure gradually became a style of functioning in that we welcome and actively seek the help of anyone who is able and willing to contribute in any way at all. This openness has won us friends in surprising quarters. For example, soon after Manushi’s special issue on the 1984 massacre of the Sikhs, we were put under special surveillance. One day, a young man claiming to be an investigator for the intelligence agency – RAW – came to make enquiries. At the end of it, he offered to be a part-time volunteer and also bring his sister for the same. Instead of acting suspiciously, on account of his belonging to a Government intelligence agency, we welcomed them both with an open mind. They remained associated with us for several years.

Many of the women today actively and consistently helping with Manushi work have had no previous political experience. When a woman offers to work full time for Manushi, our primary concern is not whether we agree with her politics or not. Our criterion is whether she is willing to put in regular work and is honest and own to differences of opinion. Even when total strangers walk in and express the desire to help with Manushi work, we usually lay out the range of work that needs doing and let them choose for themselves what they would like to help with.

Thus, the energy of a wide range of people with differing ideologies has, over the years, contributed to Manushi’s survival and growth. This includes, senior bureaucrats, lawyers, police officials, scientists, students, university, college and schoolteachers as well as volunteers from foreign countries. A steady stream of well-educated, highly skilled volunteers from abroad, including young Non-Resident Indian have proved to be most vital for Manushi’s survival. They all come at their cost, bring valuable skills and have worked with great commitment. Their love and free labour helped keep the running costs of Manushi to the barest minimum.