Kochi: The girl who sold fish in the street to eke out a living now plans to launch an online marketplace. Hanan (21), who became a social media star after someone recorded her peddling in school uniform, was forced to think big after her attempt to rent a shop in Ernakulam bumped into roadblocks.
Hanan Hamid, who has been confined to a wheelchair since a road accident on September 2, rented a shop at Thammanam but a group of locals claiming to be relatives of the shop owner intimidated her into abandoning her plans. They told the girl that they had a claim on the room and that they won't let her open the shop.
“I do not want to be disappointed. I am planning to sell fish online,” Hanan said. She added that she had already talked to technical experts and expected to launch the venture soon.
Hanan was helped by friends and well-wishers to set up a shop at Thammanam. She had rented a room and started works to set up a fish stall when a group of people claiming to be the siblings of the owner approached her.
“I rented the shop from a man who is a kidney patient undergoing frequent dialysis. I do not know about their family issues. He survives by raising a cow at his house. When he requested me to vacate the room, I could not refuse,” she said. She was paid back the advance she paid and a part of the expenses she met to renovate the room.
Hanan is continuing with her modest business despite her injuries, thanks to an auto rickshaw driver who has been helping her buy and transport fish. She said she would like to expand her business but the banks were hesitant to offer her a loan because she was still a student.
She said she wanted to buy a vehicle to transport fish from the harbour. Her plan is to buy fish in bulk, clean it in her house and sell it online through delivery boys.
An expatriate who read about Hanan's plight has offered her an apartment to live in. “He has waived the first month's rent but I have to pay from next month. I also have to pay something to the person who cooks for me because my mother is not here with me,” she said.
She is yet to recover fully from the accident. Sometimes she has to order food from restaurants.
