Making friends and influencing probasi Bengalis

The response we received for our magazine was fairly good - complimentary copy of each issue would be sent by post to new addresses and, new members would keep joining up. But, subscriptions alone cannot meet the financial needs. Hence, our struggle to get regular ads and tap new sources for fresh ads was an ongoing process. And, once we met the requirement for next issue, we would focus our attention to other related subjects.
Like – moving out to local places to make friends with probasi Bengalis. Our mission would be to sell our books, make members for Naba Nalanda and try to identify sources for ads.
That is how we made a trip to Ahmednagar. The journey was tough. We took a night bus and had to remain standing whole night. We reached Ahmednagar early morning and stayed there in a hotel for one day. It was another industrial city and had a reasonable sprinkling of Bengalis.
Later, during the Durga Pujas, we went to Pune. This city was large and had a large population of Bengalis. A number of Durga pujas were held but they were scattered in different corners. We had heard of the Congress Bhavan Durga Puja – it was supposed to be biggest one in Pune and Bengalis flocked to it.

Apart from Bangalore, Ahmednagar and Pune, we had arranged for reps of Naba Nalanda in Bhilai and Raipur. And, all these activities ate into the available time. My domestic life became practically nonexistent and my wife and son had to do most of the shopping and outdoor activities.
My professional life also suffered. I was not able to devote any extra time to my job and my bosses did not like that. I would go for duty at 7am, complete my shift at 3.30pm, take the 3.45pm shift bus to Nashik City to carry out data entry work and return home by the 10pm bus from the city. By the time I reached home, it would be 11pm and I would be famished. (to be continued ...)

A few more must reads -

Nashik Kumbhmela 2015 – a once in 12-years pilgrimage

Trip to Nashik should take in Shirdi and the Ajanta and Ellora caves

Nashik, a tourist center with links to the epic Ramayana

Nashik, a tourist center with links to the Mahabharata

Kumbhmela 2015 in Nashik – guided tours to wineries and vineyards

Nashik transforms from a place of pilgrimage to an industrial hub

British Army wants computer whizzkids to counter the growing menace of ISIS propaganda

IPL8 – Mumbai Indians break the jinx with first win against Royal Challengers Bangalore

Pattern of death changing in India – heart and lung related diseases are top killers

Stray dogs attend funeral of Mexican woman who fed them

Health tips – lose weight without dieting

Anchovies can boost good cholesterol and reduce risk factors of the heart

Another interesting blog - Citizen Journalist

Another interesting blog - Violence and atrocities

The first issue of Naba Nalanda leaves Nashik by post

It was in 1991 that the first issue of our Bengali magazine Naba Nalanda was dispatched by post to a couple of hundred addresses in various parts of India – these were complimentary copies and we were certain that this novel attempt of ours would pay dividends.
We had managed to obtain some ads to cover various elements of cost but, still, we had to invest our labor and time. It was a combined challenge because we had to not only go ad hunting but also sit at the computer to do data entry of the matter that would go into the issues.

In order to do this, we had to get acquainted with the Bengali keyboard and learn various DTP procedures regarding layout of pages, insertion of texts and images.
There were three of us in the project and while two of us were employed in HAL and stayed in township, our third friend ran his own publishing business and stayed in Nashik – his setup was nothing very hi-fi but it was useful for minor works like data entry of address labels, printing of leaflets, printing pocket calendar etcetera.
As to data entry of magazines, our drug-addict friend had, by then, become an asset for us. He would sandwich our work in between his own regular work. Of course, he would pack up by 6pm and at that time, we would take over. The understanding with the ad agency was that we would do our work from 6pm to 9pm on weekdays. On Sundays we would use his facilities based on our convenience.
Obviously, time for us was at a premium because our day began at 6am and, by the time we returned home, it was around 10pm. We would go to Nashik for data entry – it was a distance of 30-Km up and down daily. And, on Sundays, if we did not go ad hunting, we would sit at the computer for half the day. My friend and I had divided the work – if he went in the morning, I would go in the evening. (to be continued …)

A few more must reads -

Nashik Kumbhmela 2015 – a once in 12-years pilgrimage

Trip to Nashik should take in Shirdi and the Ajanta and Ellora caves

Nashik, a tourist center with links to the epic Ramayana

Nashik, a tourist center with links to the Mahabharata

Kumbhmela 2015 in Nashik – guided tours to wineries and vineyards

Nashik transforms from a place of pilgrimage to an industrial hub

British Army wants computer whizzkids to counter the growing menace of ISIS propaganda

IPL8 – Mumbai Indians break the jinx with first win against Royal Challengers Bangalore

Pattern of death changing in India – heart and lung related diseases are top killers

Stray dogs attend funeral of Mexican woman who fed them

Health tips – lose weight without dieting

Anchovies can boost good cholesterol and reduce risk factors of the heart

Another interesting blog - Citizen Journalist

Another interesting blog - Violence and atrocities