Ready for launch

Last month culture startup Indic Inspirations announced the signing of an MOU with the Indian Space Research Organisation ISRO initiated as part of the missions of its Capacity Development Program Office CBPO As a result we will now be able to collect authorised merchandise inspired by ISROrsquos missions and workldquoThe whole nation has been inspired by ISRO and followed the progress of the Chandrayaan mission We watched the landing of the Chandrayaan lander and would love to preserve those memories with some keepsakesrdquo says Sunil Jalihal founder CEO of Indic Inspirations about the national agency that harnessed space technology for national development while pursuing space science research and planetary exploration ldquoISROrsquos history missions and achievements are stories that need to be told These are inspiring tales of highquality rocket science stellar leadership and frugal engineering that have created useful applications which in turn have helped leapfrog India into the technological futurerdquoThe startup is rolling out a collection of ISROthemed merchandise for science and space enthusiasts which includes a host of products from scale models Tshirts mugs spacerelated games and toys to brass and silver medallions representing the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV playing cards embodying the engineering of the Chandrayaan and Mangalyaan missions stationery items bearing the shapes of ISROrsquos legendary rockets and even a book of photographs and factoids about ISROrsquos people missions and technology Jalihal says they conceived the memorabilia after the team studied ISROrsquos work The idea was to capture peoplersquos imagination and present its work through utility and designIndic Inspirations was launched in December 2019 with the aim of creating souvenirs and gift items that would tell stories of Indiarsquos heritage culture traditions and achievements driven by research and with a focus on design construction and packaging The products claims Jalihal represent Indian expertise and have an impact on artisanal earnings the craftspeople paid marketdriven prices The business he says has given artisans access to additional consumer and corporate markets and has also helped them improve the quality of their products with better materials and processes Indic Inspirations works with over 65 different types of crafts and with artisans based across IndiaSunil JalihalThe organisation was born out of the nonprofit Heart for Art Trust that endeavoured to promote Indiarsquos traditional arts and crafts providing livelihoods to rural craftspeople through workshops and commissioned projects His team has created over 40 collections of products that include specific cityinspired tokens Indian flags Constitution Preamble plaques and spinning wheels developed around the theme of India The Republic and objects associated with holistic and Vedic living Jalihal adds ldquoWe strive to represent Indiarsquos soft power and create objects that are designed manufactured and packaged to modern quality and sustainability We are hoping to work on representing Indian achievement in other areas like the railways defence and industryrdquoWHAT ISROthemed merchandiseWHERE httpswwwindicinspirationscomFOR Rs 250 to Rs 4500