The 1st India Pen Show (TIPS), conceived and organised by Constellations88 and Magna Carta will be held on the 2nd and the 3rd of February at the Nehru Center, Worli. TIPS is the first and the largest of its kind pen show in India, where fountain pen aficionados, manufacturers, calligraphers and makers of accessories like inks and stationary will be highlighting the latest trends from the industry from around the world and is expected to be a bonanza for all lovers of fine writing, the written word and writing implements.
As 2019 is the hundredth birth anniversary of noted litterateur Kaifi Azmi, TIPS proposes to pay a special tribute, through the dedication of a special edition fountain pen, only a hundred of which will be made. The pen will be given to super achievers from their respective fields of excellence which will include among others, Javed Akhtar, ustad Zakir Hussain, Anuradha Parikh, Mahesh Bhatt, Shyam Benegal, Pritish Nandy and Bhawana Somaaya among others.
The two-day event will be spread over 8000 sq feet, where as many as 50 brands have taken up stalls and will feature back to back events – ink launches, calligraphy workshops, letter writing, post-card mails – all aimed at rekindling the passion for the pen in the younger generations. For those even younger, TIPS will have a several activities that are specifically designed to provide a fun way to learn about pens and art of writing.
Pen tours have also been chalked out wherein acknowledged experts from the fountain pen fraternity will personally take visitors around the show and address all their queries, apart from explaining the finer nuances of the intricate mechanics that go into the making of the apparently simple fountain pen. Such guided tours will also cover the historical aspects of fountain pen making, seeking to regale the visitors with the chronological developments that led to the creation of the fountain pens as we know them today.
The fountain pen, that once used to adorn the shirt pockets of men of letters is quietly making a comeback as more and more people realise the importance of writing with a pen, not only as a protest against the digital domination of their lives, but also as a means unwind, to think with more clarity and to better articulate their thoughts, that too in their own hands. Viewed from this angle alone, the 1st India Pen Show could not have come at a better time, for it will be the alter on which the restless, and there are many, who will seek their deliverance.
TIPS will also perform another invaluable service – it will reintroduce the rich Indian legacy of fountain pen making to her young, telling the story not only of our traditional excellence in craftsmanship and the resolve to make the Swadeshi pen, but also help the generation next to better appreciate our proud heritage in calligraphy and related art forms. That India makes fountain pens, that too of qualities that are at par with the best in the world, is another message that TIPS will hopefully send out loud and clear to the world of fountain pen lovers.
TIPS is presented by William Pen with Kaweco India as the co-sponsors.
