Celebrating India Narrating stories of historic moments

India is on the moon with Chandrayaan-3, which is indeed a remarkable moment for all the Indians. This historic phenomenon should be preserved for future generations as a long-lasting memory of one of the major achievements of India. Recognising this need, Sunil Jalihal, a technocrat and CEO, Indic Inspirations, a Pune based culture startup, has come up with the extraordinary and innovative idea of preserving such a historic phenomenon. Indic Inspirations is the first registered merchandiser of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and has developed 100+ products dedicated to Chandrayaan-3 will give society a better understanding of the importance of India’s space programme, help them celebrate the mission and make them feel proud

A journey to celebrate ISRO

Sunil Jalihal and his team at Indic Inspirations, have designed an INDIA in SPACE-ISRO Wall Museum for Schools, dioramas of Vikram Landers and Pragyan rover scale models and other such Chandrayaan-3 souvenirs that underscore the remarkable achievements of India.

“We have presented the entire history of ISRO in this Wall Museum, right from how ISRO was established to its new achievements. We have scale models of each spacecraft, rocket and great personalities from ISRO in this museum,” said Sunil Jalihal. He wants school students to be inspired, motivated and educated about space and rocket science. “We will add artefacts to this museum according to the missions of ISRO. This museum will be easily and regularly accessible to the students in schools without having to visit a science museum in a large capital city,” he added.

Jalihal always thought that ISRO, Indian Institute of Technology, Indian Institutes of Management, Tata Group, Indian Railways etc. are the institutions of eminence in the country and people should be proud of them. So he went to ISRO two and a half years’ ago to talk to them. “Finally, after six months of conversation, we signed up as ISRO’s first registered merchandiser. We have made products based on space and aeronautics for small children so that they can discover more through fun learning, games based on space, Mission Mars, and other missions of ISRO. Through this fun learning, the children will be able to learn about space and will be able to develop curiosity about space and rocket science,” he said

The story behind the ISRO Wall Museum

Great things happen when inspiration and creativity are involved, and Jalihal has proven it. Earlier, he was solely making small products inspired by space, but an award changed his perspective on educating people. He said, “Since we are a startup, we got invited by the Maharashtra Innovation Society, which encourages entrepreneurship. They invited us and we got selected as one of the best startups in the country.”

From 1200 applications, 15 applications were selected and Indic Inspirations was one of them, which was recognised as a culture startup for narrating stories by combining arts, crafts, design and technology.

Indic Inspirations received a grant for the best startup award and this recognition inspired Rahul Gupta (IAS), Chief Executive Officer, Zilla Parishad, Dharashiv (Osmanabad), to buy their creative space artefacts for several schools in the district. “This gesture inspired us to do something more to educate school children. So because of that award, we created a museum—something that every school should have,” said Jalihal.

Inspiring others

Not just for ISRO, Jalihal and his team are also currently developing artefacts and souvenirs for the National Defence Academy (NDA) and the Indian Railways. He mentions, “After seeing our ISRO artefacts, the NDA and Indian Railways approached us to develop souvenirs highlighting their history and achievements”. Jalihal and his team have developed souvenirs of train journeys on Indian Railways, railway bridges in India, told the story of Vande Bharat Express and the iconic Pune-Mumbai Deccan Queen express train and so on.

Narrating stories through objects

“Narrating stories through objects is the easiest way to preserve remarkable achievements and get constant inspiration,” said Jalihal. He has implemented this idea by creating souvenirs around various interesting but half known stories. He introduced the stories around origin of Shunya (zero) in India, Lota (a round water pot), Navrasaas (the nine emotions), the Constitution of India, Hastamudras (hand gestures) of dance, Lota-shaped structures for hydroponics, Shunya-inspired jewellery and other such stories through his creative souvenirs.

“We want everybody to remember that these are inspirations for all Indians; objects narrate the stories in the best way. These objects will also be on your desk or your home and give you constant inspiration,” he expressed.

"Indic Inspirations has made products based on space and aeronautics for small children so that they can discover more through fun learning, games based on space, Mission Mars, and other missions of ISRO"

Reintroduction of Indian crafts

While exploring India and its culture and visits to different parts of the country, Jalihal found several indigenous crafts that were not so popular but had a rich history. “Through Indic Inspirations, our aim is to narrate the stories of Indian civilisation and modern India. India has been a place of stories for centuries and it has always been the master storyteller of the world,” emphasised Jalihal.

Through his journey across India, Jalihal has come across over 3000 native crafts in India that are either on the verge of becoming extinct or have lost their craze amongst the young generation. This motivated him and he took a decision that he will start educating everyone about these indigenous crafts. He started his journey of bringing these crafts to society and helped artisans to be innovative. “We have re-introduced traditional paintings like Gond paintings and Madhubani to narrate the stories of Sita’s wedding, Ramayan and stories of different cultures with the touch of modernisation. They are all made with natural colours obtained from turmeric, indigo, natural lacquer made up from insect secretion, vegetables, flowers and fruits, which make these paintings more beautiful,” he added

Artisanal Engineering

Jalihal not only wanted to educate people about the rich colours of India, but he also wanted people to understand its importance. This thought has led to the innovation of “Lota” and “Time and Space" inspired artefacts. He said, “We created a genre of craftsmanship through Artisanal Engineering and taught that to the traditional artisans working with us. Through this Artisanal Engineering, the ideas of 'Shunya’ and ‘Time and Space’ evolved, and that made the artisans more creative in their art forms. Now they create different types of artefacts, but with a traditional touch”. He said that the Channapatna Woodcraft artisans were earlier only involved in traditional woodcraft, but now they make rockets and Chandrayaan 3 Lander objects inspired by ISRO. Also, the artisans of Moradabad district have been known for their brass work for many centuries, but now we taught them to make Chandrayaan and other artefacts of India’s cityscapes.

Livelihood for artisans

Jalihal is working with 65 crafts and 400 artisans across India, right from Kashmir to Swamimalai in the south and Kachchh to Manipur in the east. “I work with a cluster of artisans, involve multiple people and work in different types of art like Gond painting, Madhubani painting, Channapatna, Bengal Pattachitra, Cherial Art, Bidri Metal Craft, Odisha Pattachitra, Sabai Grass Craft, Bhaona Mask Making Craft, etc. to narrate stories of different cities,” he said.