Meet India’s artisanal fountain pen makers whose writing instruments are in demand across the world

ASA Pens, Ranga Pens, Fosfor Pens, and Lotus Pens are four Indian artisanal fountain pen makers who are crafting unique designs with traditional lathe set-ups, hand-polishing, and hand-cutting threads. These artists offer custom orders and have clients across 90 countries.

ASA Pens, Chennai

At the age of eight, L Subramaniam began collecting fountain pens inspired by his paternal uncle, a fountain pen collector. After working for 21 years in the corporate sector, Subramaniam decided to venture into entrepreneurship and founded ASA Pens in 2013. 

“Making fountain pens was a natural choice,” he says, explaining how his pens are made using a traditional lathe set-up, and the “shape, design proportions, and polishing are done by hand”. Crafted from acrylic or ebonite rods, he says the rods are first cut to the required sizes and then turned in traditional lathes by hand to achieve the desired shape for the pen’s barrel, cap, and body. “These handcrafted parts are then assembled by cutting threads in the parts to join them and hand-polished. The final assembly involves fixing the nib, clips, bands, etc. On average, a complete pen will take anywhere between three to four hours, and more for complex designs,” says, Subramaniam who is now working on his sought-after model, ASA Galactic. A ‘jumbo acrylic’ pen with a translucent finish and an enormous ink capacity, it is one of their bestsellers, he says. The team is also launching a new lacquered pen series which they showcased at the Kolkata Pen Show earlier this year.

Gearing up to launch his first retail store at Park Street, Kolkata, in August, Manoj also undertakes custom orders. “All specifications such as the pen size, nib size, section/grip shape, and pen design are discussed with the customer, and a raw sketch is made. Often, customers provide their own materials to make them,” he says, adding how they have made many models based on designs inspired by classics such as Parker Duofold, Conway Stewart, and Waterman models. Manoj is quick to add that several models such as the ASA Nauka, ASA Azaadi, and ASA Daily were crowd-sourced. “We run WhatsApp, and Facebook groups and a few members came together to conceptualise pens for the specific group. These designs later became a part of our regular offerings,” he concludes. 

Between ₹3,000 and ₹5,000 on asapens.in

Ranga Pens, Chennai

Harking back to 1968, the company took shape in Thiruvallur by MS Pandurangan, now 71.  He learned the art of pen-making as a teenager, and his passion remains strong to date. “We don’t know anything apart from pens,” says his son, MP Kandan, adding, “We have been making pens for over 50 years, and we take pride in the family-run craft business.”