Ankur Sharma @askankur

Before the world knew the power of Big Pharma, a journalist in a tiny lab in Bombay created a substance so potent it triggered a trade war with London. It was a yellow grease that did not just soothe headaches but funded a movement, bypassed British blockades, & became 1 of the few Indian products to make the Empire's own medicine look like scented water. Unlike other brands started by chemists, Amrutanjan was founded by Kasinadhuni/Kasinathuni Nageswara Rao, a man who was primarily a journalist & a freedom fighter. In the late 1800s, the pain balm market in India was a British monopoly. If your head throbbed, you bought imported ointments. Rao saw this as a tax on pain. He retreated into a lab & perfected a formula that was significantly more potent than anything coming out of London. The British tried to push their own balms like Vicks/early menthol rubs as sophisticated & odorless. They attempted to smear Amrutanjan as primitive because of its overpowering scent. Rao leaned into the scent. He realized that in a country where literacy was low, a brand could not just be a name, it had to be an experience. He distributed free samples at music concerts (Sabhas) & religious festivals. By the time the British tried to patent the market for pain relief, the entire Indian public had already associated the smell of camphor & menthol with trust. The British balms felt alien & weak compared to the sensory explosion of the yellow tin. The smell of Amrutanjan... that piercing, camphor-heavy aroma became the literal scent of the freedom struggle. If you walked into a room & it smelled of Amrutanjan, it was a silent signal: A patriot is present. It was a scent the British police could not arrest, yet it was everywhere. The British had a Patent Medicine Tax that made imported drugs expensive. However, by classifying Amrutanjan as an Ayurvedic Proprietary Medicine, Rao managed to navigate a complex legal gray area. He essentially used the British legal system against itself. By proving his ingredients were ancient yet his manufacturing was modern, he avoided the crippling taxes that applied to purely Western drugs, while maintaining a price point (initially 10 annas) that made British imports look like daylight robbery Rao fought back not just in the market, but in the press. He used the profits from the balm to fund Andhra Patrika, 1 of the most influential anti-British newspapers. The British were literally paying for their own downfall. Every time a British officer’s wife bought a jar of Amrutanjan for a migraine (because it worked better than the London balms), she was inadvertently funding the printing of revolutionary literature that called for the end of the Raj. By the 1930s, this Indian yellow grease was being exported to Indian diaspora & locals in South Africa & Ceylon. It became a global symbol of Eastern Wisdom defeating Western Chemistry. It was 1 of those few occasions, an Indian OTC (Over the Counter) product achieved cult status internationally w/o a single pound of British investment. In fact, the yellow tin became so iconic that it did not need a label in the villages. The color & the smell were the brand. It was a biological Swadeshi. While others were fighting with words, Rao was fighting with molecular relief.

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Never thought a company would actually make a jingle out a Tax law suit they fought for 25 years in various courts which they eventually won in the Supreme Court. But the iconic jingle outlived the legal proceedings.

Celebrating 73 years of trust, security & dignity. EPFO continues its mission of empowering every worker, every family, every dream. #73YearsOfEPFO @mansukhmandviya @ShobhaBJP @PIB_India @MIB_India @LabourMinistry @mygovindia @narendramodi @PMOIndia

💡 Myth Busted! Now, members can withdraw 75% of their PF anytime during or after leaving a job, and the remaining 25% after one year of unemployment. EPF ensures both easy access and long-term financial security. #EPFO #MoLE #SocialSecurity #WorkerWelfare

*नौकरी छूटने पर EPF निकालने के लिए 2 महीने की जगह 12 महीने क्यो किया गया ?* - नौकरी छूटने के तुरंत बाद लाभार्थी 75% अमाउंट तुरंत निकाल सकता हैं । - ⁠12 महीने तक बेरोजगार रहने पे बाकी 25% राशि भी निकाल सकता हैं । - ⁠2 महीने में पूर्ण राशि निकालने से 3 महीने के बाद दूसरी नौकरी लग जाने से सर्विस continuous नहीं मानी जाती हैं और वे पेंशन पात्र नहीं होते । - क्योंकि पेंशन के लिए 10 वर्ष continuous नौकरी जरूरी है । - इन Reforms से EPFO के लाभार्थी को पेंशन हेतु पात्र बनाने में सुविधा होगी ।

The impossible crossover Contra and Tetris [🎞️ tercio_miranda]

Happy Statehood day of Himachal Pradesh ♥️ Himachal is not a place its feel Retweet it and follow us for more beautiful Himachal updates

This happens only in Himachal

This is a beautifully scripted ad (agency: The Womb)! It keeps you curious about who is talking (as people bow). Is it God? But then, God appears too, to close the ad! Fantastic writing! But there are serious issues with this narrative. Watch, and then read 👇 1/2

When throwing paint turns into a masterpiece. Paul Kenton is a contemporary artist, acclaimed for his cityscape paintings which capture the unique energy of cities across the world. This is London

This clip went around the world last week. A Chimpanzee in Cameroon, Africa apparently asked for a photographers’s help in drinking water; then repaid him by washing his hands gently… A useful applied lesson: If you want to succeed, then assist & support those in your community & workplace & you will, in turn, be supported by them… #MondayMotivation

What is happening in mediums like Twitter (and other social media) is exactly what Yuval Noah Harari said to Zuckerberg in this conversation in 2019. youtube.com/watch?v=Boj9eD…

Information booklet for the EPF members, go to this link👇 epfindia.gov.in/site_docs/PDFs… #AmritMahotsav #epfowithyou #epf #PF @PMOIndia @byadavbjp @Rameswar_Teli @LabourMinistry @PIB_India @MIB_India @AmritMahotsav

Beautiful town of Himachal Bilaspur 😍

Himachal+AIIMS=❤️ Thank you PM @narendramodi for Delivering this beautiful AIIMS at Himachal Pradesh

Chandigarh to Manali in just 6 hours. This tunnel and highway is unveiled today Thank you @nitin_gadkari ji for this gift

Best wishes everyone on WORLD LAUGHTER DAY . Keep laughing ! 🤣🤣🤣🤣 #WorldLaughterDay2023 #sumedhshindemimicry #sumedhshinde

You are in mystical village of Himachal called Rasol ❤️ Retweet and follow is your love Himachal 😊