It was quite a forlorn day in Kolkata on Saturday. The weather was gloomy, there was hardly any breeze, and the sun kept hiding behind the clouds. But, inside a factory located in the interiors of Jadavpur, Kolkata was plenty of conversations going on. Some were historical facts, some about the rising pollution issues, and some about handling depression by organic means. What’s interesting is that all the topics were linked by one mutual point where all the ideas converged. That, my friend, is Sulekha Ink.

A few dignitaries from the education and media sector gathered in the Sulekha Ink Factory on Saturday afternoon for a noble cause. Professor Dilip Shah, Dean of the Student Affairs, The Bhawanipur Education Society College;  Bishambhar Newar, Head of the Taaza TV news channel and Chhapte Chhapte Newspaper;  Suparna Pathak, an eminent journalist, Dr Vasundhara Mishra, Hindi poetess (or should I say, nightingale), and Minakshi Chaturvedi, Professor at the Bhawanipur Education Society College. In attendance were the current driving force behind Sulekha,  Kaushik Maitra and his daughter,  Ahana Maitra. And of course, to moderate the session, Chawm Ganguly, – one cannot have an event at Sulekha without him overseeing it such is his passion for the almost century-old brand. 

You would think with the presence of so many esteemed dignitaries how formal and subdued the meet would have been. I am delighted to tell you that it was the exact opposite of that. There were formal introductions and after that everything was natural and easy-going. There were greetings and there were comfortable tête-à-tête happening frequently. Every conversation was guided by a mutual keen interest in the comeback of Sulekha with such vigor after so many years. It was because everyone was so interested to know the way Sulekha was coming back and taking the market by storm.

The meet started when Newar ji tossed a question about how the brand intended to survive with the market being dominated by the use-and-throw pens because inks and fountain pens are considered a thing of the past by the majority of the population today.  Chawm Ganguly was quick to give his valuable input, expressing that, very soon the world is going to unanimously realize that the likho-pheko pens end up contributing to the landfills or ruining the marine life by finding a spot on the seabed. The carbon footprint of these pens is much higher than fountain pens and inks. He lifted a pen from his pocket, a Parker Sonnet, and said that the pen was 30 years old and for quite a few seconds, the room fell silent, just in awe.

Everybody was quite astonished to know that the entire Sulekha factory was powered by solar electricity, making it one of the very few carbon-neutral companies in the industry. That’s when Kaushik Maitra entered and threw in more information about the brand that is, Sulekha. He explained how a factory, that was shut down for 30 whole years, was fighting every obstacle in its way, to come up with new concepts, colours, and collaborations to provide something new to the fountain pen industry every now and then. He felicitated everyone in the room and thanked them for their company.

That’s when he took the opportunity and asked the dignitaries to come forward for a special cause. He was holding a bottle of the newly-made ‘Swaraj’ ink and wanted them to launch the product then and there. Who better than a media and educational personality to launch the mighty ink, Swaraj! Newarji and Prof. Dilip Shah agreed at once. In fact, after looking at the Samarpan, Swadhin, and Swadeshi series, they were more than happy to be the ones launching the Swaraj inks. Immediately, almost acting on instinct, Newarji said, ‘Swaraj is my birth right and I shall have it.” Professor Dilip Shah said, “The entire environment here from the gate to the factory premises is so patriotic. I can feel a surge of patriotism hurling inside me right now.”

Post the launch, Dr Vasundhara Mishra expressed her desire to narrate a poem on our freedom movement and inks, that was one of the weapons used by our respected freedom fighters to drive the foreigners away. While she was narrating the poem with a strong wave of enthusiasm and nationalist gusto, the room listened to her intently. We will release the video of her poem shortly on our YouTube channel.

The meet ended with a tour of the entire factory as Kaushik Maitra himself explained to everyone how inks were made, from water and dyes to getting bottled up and ready to be packaged. Even the staff of the factory was high in spirits and keen to shed any string of knowledge that they had on the inks with full details and zeal.

It is safe to say that the gathering was small only in numbers due to certain limitations. But, the motive, cause, and emotions of all the people present there were as large as life. There are challenges and then there are challenges that brands like Sulekha, fighting for a noble cause, have to face. It is when significant people like Bishambhar Newar, Prof Dilip Shah, Dr Vasundhara Mishra, Suparna  Pathak, and Minakshi  Chaturvedi extend their support to such brands, that our faith is restored in mankind again. We recognize how people still refuse to let go of old traditions and habits that are for the betterment of the entire society.

We thank everyone for their participation in Saturday’s event. For our readers, there are several new things in line that we would like to keep you informed about. Follow this space for more exciting information about Sulekha. Hint: Handwriting and Netaji.

For More information contact: https://www.sulekhaink.co.in/

Watch you tube video: youtu.be/B-_ACIdx_KU