Tucked away in a bylane of Rajamahendravaram, a city in Andhra Pradesh, is a shop that proudly displays its legacy as the birthplace of India’s first and perhaps only ‘swadeshi’ pen – the Ratnam pen, a report by Narendra Puppala
Prized for their smooth, silky writing experience, and the touch of elegance they add to sartorial style, fountain pens have become a rarity today. First, the advent of ballpoint pens, and then, with the world fast transiting to paperless mode, the fountain pen has almost been relegated to history.
Yet, a ‘Made in India’ fountain pen that was born nearly a hundred years ago, has stood its ground and remains a sought after writing accessory – by the high and mighty, and connoisseurs of writing alike.
Tucked away in a bylane of Rajamahendravaram, a city in Andhra Pradesh, is a shop that proudly displays its legacy as the birthplace of India’s first and perhaps only ‘swadeshi’ pen – the Ratnam pen.
K.V. Ratnam & Sons, have been crafting fountain pens that have been prized for their writing feel and quality.
Since 1932, when it arrived on the scene as a truly India-made fountain pen, the Ratnam pen has been the choice of writing instrument for Presidents, Prime Ministers, Governors, erstwhile royals, writers, and personalities of stature.
The legacy was started by K.V. Ratnam, a gifted goldsmith who had a talent for die-making and engraving. Ratnam had his first encounter with fountain pens while helping a local sub-judge with his pen nibs’ repair. The judge, who apparently suffered from shaky hands, would often drop his pen, resulting in damage to the nib. Ratnam would mend the damaged pen nibs which otherwise would take a long time to replace, having to be shipped all the way from Britain.
The Ratnam pen was actually conceived a hundred years ago – when K.V. Ratnam met Mahatma Gandhi in 1920. He engraved Gandhi’s face on a tie and gifted it to the Mahatma. However, pointing out that India needs to be self-reliant in producing everything from pins to pens, Mahatma Gandhi advised Ratnam to produce something like that. Ratnam decided to produce indigenous pens. The idea for a Swadeshi pen was born in that meeting.
Initially, Ratnam crafted a desi pen, using imported raw material, and had it sent to Mahatma Gandhi who promptly rejected it. Thereafter Ratnam again set down to producing an ebonite pen with a 14 carat gold nib. In 1935, the Mahatma wrote to Ratnam, complimenting him on the swadeshi pen. The letter holds pride of place in the family establishment to this day.
The pens that were crafted by K.V. Ratnam and Sons, in Rajahmundry, soon caught the attention of nationalist leaders. Jawaharlal Nehru visited the pen works, and was known to use a Ratnam pen.
The gold-plated nib and rounded ebonite body soon became the standard writing equipment for students, youngsters, professionals, and government officials – with customised models for each group of users.
Ratnam designed and began producing six pen models, which his descendants have stuck to through the years.
“We introduced some new models but customers pointed out that they can always buy other models elsewhere. They are only interested in the original models. So we discontinued new models, and stuck to the original pen models introduced by my grandfather,” his grandson Gopalaratnam told.
The most expensive Ratnam Supreme’ with gold-plated nib, cost all of Rs 2.50 – a princely sum in those long-gone days. Today, the same model costs approximately Rs 5000.
On the whole, however, pricing ranges between Rs 500 to Rs 5000, with price going up for silver and gold nibbed models.
Ratnam passed on his mantle to his son Ramana Murthy, who passed away a few months ago. Ramana Murthy built up the business further. He is also credited with crafting the smallest fountain pen.
Now, Ramana Murthy’s sons Gopalaratnam and Chandrasekhar, helm the operations. They produce around 300 pens a month. For the most part, their pens are snapped up by an assortment of government officials and pen aficionados.
The pens are also included in gift packs given out by corporates and governmental ceremonies. The ‘Ratnam Supreme’ was among the gifts that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had presented to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, during her India visit two years ago.
But despite the demand for their famed pens, there is a potential crisis of sorts looming on the horizon. Ratnam’s third-generation heirs are not in a position to scale up. Ironically, it’s not lack of capital or resources that is the stumbling block.
“We are not getting manpower. Nowadays people are not interested in taking up this kind of work, which requires patience and practice. We are even willing to provide all support to people who come forward to set up these pen manufacturing units. But nobody is interested,” says Gopalaratnam.
Having raised the flag of self-reliance during British rule, and holding up against the challenges thrown up by liberalisation, and globalisation, India’s own fountain pen definitely deserves a helping hand from the powers that be – to survive and enthral future generations.
For now, Ratnam’s heirs are optimistic that the next crop of youngsters in the family will warm up to the art of crafting legacy fountain pens.
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