In a heartwarming incident that captures its very essence, a distressed mother travelling from Pune to Kota found an unexpected lifeline in a digital community. With her baby's milk having curdled and no pantry car in sight, she turned to a Facebook group, tagging words like 'mother' and 'baby'. Within moments, the group's powerful network sprang into action. One member alerted the railways, while another contacted a relative. By the time the train arrived at the next station, a railway officer and a local resident were waiting with fresh milk. This rapid, compassionate response wasn't from a government helpline but from PULA (Pune Ladies), a group now famously dubbed 'Pune's Google for women.'
The Genesis of a Digital Sanctuary
The brainchild of advocate and social impact enthusiast Sonia Agarwal Konjeti, PULA was born in July 2015 from a simple yet profound personal observation. During her maternity phase, Agarwal Konjeti scrolled through social media and realized a significant gap: there was no cohesive platform for women to connect for everyday practical needs. From childcare and healthcare to professional services and financial advice, women lacked a dedicated space. This insight propelled her to launch what she describes as a "women-centric digital sanctuary."
"I started PULA purely out of a need," says the 43-year-old founder, a two-time TEDx speaker and IIM Bangalore alumna. "I understood the power of social groups. When I did some research, Pune didn't have any such groups that would connect women for their benefits." Her motives were clear: to help women start independent businesses, facilitate daily needs, address women-specific problems, and foster financial independence.
Metamorphosis into a Powerhouse Network
From its humble beginnings, PULA has undergone a remarkable transformation. Today, over a decade later, it stands as India's largest city-specific women's group, boasting a staggering membership of over 300,000 women. Its reach and impact are monumental, having successfully connected more than 17,000 women entrepreneurs. The platform has evolved far beyond simple Q&A, fostering specialized sub-communities like a Writers Club, cooking forums, and groups for financial literacy and wealth-building.
The group's magic, however, lies in its human-powered search engine model. "Anything you want, here in this group, people just post their doubts and immediately get answers from real people," Agarwal Konjeti explains. "They've begun calling PULA 'Pune's Google for women,' a living search engine powered by compassion rather than algorithms." This was vividly illustrated in another instance where a member found an elderly woman lost on Pune's streets. After posting the woman's photo and details on PULA, a relative identified her within hours, reuniting the family even before formal police procedures could begin.
Beyond Digital: Offline Impact and Support Systems
PULA's influence extends powerfully into the physical world. The group regularly organizes offline networking events, community picnics, social service initiatives, and donation drives. For its entrepreneurial members, PULA facilitates bazaars and exhibitions, providing a direct platform to reach the masses. "We only provide the platform for them to easily connect with the masses," Agarwal Konjeti notes.
Perhaps one of its most critical initiatives is the PULA Support Group, a dedicated space for stories of grief, resilience, and recovery. Recognizing that statistics on domestic violence and mental health often miss the human toll, Agarwal Konjeti created this safe haven. "Women needed spaces to vent, to heal, to be heard without judgment," she states. This support group, encompassing 50,000 women, helps them navigate some of the darkest challenges of womanhood.
The ripple effects of this empowered community are profound. Agarwal Konjeti observes a quiet transformation in the households of PULA members, where men and children have become "more supportive, more present, more respectful of the space women carve for themselves."
Her journey and PULA's success have been recognized with numerous awards, including the prestigious Savitribai Phule Sanman in 2021 and an acknowledgment from the House of Commons in London. For anyone looking to build a similar community, her advice is simple yet powerful: "Do good and add value. This will lead to your own growth." In an algorithm-driven world, PULA stands as a testament to the unparalleled power of human connection and collective empathy.
