IJARSAI International Journal of Advanced Research Scientific Analysis & Inferences
Volume 2, Issue 1, January-June, 2026
Between Liberation and Discipline: Microfinance Experiences of Kudumbasree Beneficiaries in Kerala
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IJARSAI Int. J. Adv. Res. Sci. Anal. Infer.
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Article Dates: Received: 11 April 2026 | Revised Submission: 27 May 2026 | Accepted: 20 June 2026 | Available Online: 30 June 2026
Abstract
Keywords: Kudumbasree; Microfinance; Economic Empowerment; In-depth Interviews; Kerala; Capability Approach; Conscientisation; Disciplinary Power; Self-Help Groups; Qualitative Research
How to Cite:
Ammu S. Krishna
Research Scholar
Department of Commerce
University of Kerala, India
Email: ammukrishna55@gmail.com
Dr. Sanu F
Assistant Professor
PG & Research Department of Commerce
Fatima Mata National College (Autonomous), Kollam, Kerala, India
Dr. Anjali B
Assistant Professor
Department of Commerce, Loyola College of Social Sciences
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
Article Dates: Received: 11 April 2026 | Revised Submission: 27 May 2026 | Accepted: 20 June 2026 | Available Online: 30 June 2026
Abstract
This qualitative study investigates the economic empowerment experiences of Kudumbasree microfinance beneficiaries in Kerala through in-depth interviews with nine respondents drawn from Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs) in Kollam district. Using nine structured interview questions designed to elicit both affirmative and critical responses, the study surfaces a complex and often contradictory landscape of microfinance outcomes. Thematically, the findings reveal that microfinance access has meaningfully enhanced financial literacy, income diversification, and women’s self-perception among several beneficiaries; yet the same institutional structure has simultaneously produced debt stress, intra-household conflict, and a re-entrenchment of gendered labour burdens for others. Philosophically, the article situates these lived experiences within the frameworks of Sen’s capability approach, Freire’s conscientisation theory, de Beauvoir’s concept of situated freedom, and Foucault’s analytics of disciplinary power, arguing that the Kudumbasree model is best understood not as a linear empowerment intervention but as a contested site of simultaneous liberation and discipline. The study concludes that sustainable economic empowerment through microfinance requires institutional redesign that acknowledges the interior complexity of women’s lives, moving beyond credit disbursal metrics toward genuine expansion of substantive freedoms.
Keywords: Kudumbasree; Microfinance; Economic Empowerment; In-depth Interviews; Kerala; Capability Approach; Conscientisation; Disciplinary Power; Self-Help Groups; Qualitative Research
How to Cite:
Krishna, A. S., Sanu, F., & Anjali, B. (2026). Between liberation and discipline: Microfinance experiences of Kudumbasree beneficiaries in Kerala. IJARSAI International Journal of Advanced Research Scientific Analysis & Inferences, 2(1), 167–189. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21076803
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