Couple shows way to beat financial blues

MUMBAI: Their debt of Rs 5 crore was catastrophic enough, but the Kotharis' problems didn't end with the crash-landing of their dreams. This suburban Mumbai family quickly found itself socially isolated���friends turned unfriendly, relatives became aloof and cars, jewellery and other prized belongings had to be sold.
But that's not the end of the story.The Kotharis bounced back. Not all their material trappings are in place yet but peace of mind certainly is. Pradeep is now a contractor and wife Meera is a school counsellor.
Ever since the global meltdown began, scorching the job market and pinching pay packets, stories of suicide, depression and floundering marriages have flooded newspapers. Kandivli resident Parag Tanna killed his pregnant wife before killing himself in October, citing stock market losses as the reason. A family of four in Borivli committed suicide because of mounting debt.
But what Pradeep and Meera Kothari went through a decade ago and the way they bounced back could be a lesson in fortitude for many families right now.
The downslide for this Goregaon family began in 1997, when Pradeep decided to upgrade his business of manufacturing raw materials for stickers. He had run it since he was 17 and, in 1997, he set up an ambitious plant worth Rs 15 crore in Silvassa.
But delayed finances scuppered his project and he was left holding a debt of Rs 5 crore, of which Rs 3.5 crore was personal and Rs 1.5 crore had come from institutions.
"We were surrounded by creditors from all sides. We sold both our cars, including an imported one. My husband, who had not travelled by public transport for years, started travelling by train. I also had to sell my gold ornaments. We just about managed to hang on to our flat," Meera said. The trick to survival, according to Meera, is to remember that a financial crisis is not the end of the world.