Nehru's support for Lakshmi!

                 Just a beauty business !

        If you had landed here expecting some secret political alliance or a cheesy affair, I am sorry. This post is about the history of a brand that has made its mark. That has indeed helped cover the marks of many.

 In the 1950s, though we were politically free to govern, we were unable to free ourselves from the comforts of what the westerners had left behind. The craze for foreign  cosmetic products among the Indian upper class women had huge impact on the foreign -exchange reserve. Nehru, the then Prime Minister was forced to reflect on this issue. Also there was a discontent among the middle class women about the affordability of such products. These demands pressurized Nehru to invite the visionary, the leader of free market, JRD Tata to come up with a cosmetic brand that would satisfy the upper-class women with a modishness, motivate middle-class women with affordability and most importantly that would blend well with Indian skin tone. This concern gave form to one of the leading cosmetic brands in India. When it came to naming the product, JRD Tata was amazingly witty enough to choose a name that had both traditional touch and a tinge of modernity that would reach women of all household. He named it 'lakme´. The name was taken from a French drama-'lakme´, whose origin is interestingly from the sanskrit word 'Lakshmi', the goddess of wealth and beauty. The reach would have been a question had he brought the products out in the name 'Lakshmi '.. Lakshmi lipstick, lakshmi compact, lakshmi kajal... sounds a bit unappealing right? Lakme' is the first in-house cosmetic brand released in 1952 and it was later sold to the Hindustan Unilever. It still continues to be a cosmetic giant with a huge market in its hands. So, this is how Nehru supported Lakshmi 😉.. nothing but a beauty business !"