Hemendra Mohan Bose
Encyclopedia
Hemendra Mohan Bose (1864 – 28 August 1916) was an Indian entrepreneur
, manufacturer of Kuntalin hair oil and Delkhosh brand of perfume. He was the first Indian to manufacture gramophone
s. Many of his businesses spurred from amateur pursuit
s.
, where his father Haramohan Bose used to stay, the ancestral home of the family was in the village of Jaysiddhi, in Mymensingh District
. According to Michael Kinnear, Bose was born in 1864 at his ancestral village. After passing I.A. he took admission in the Medical College Kolkata
. While a student at the college, he suffered an accident where his eyes were scarred in acid. After recovering, he quit his medical career. In 1890, Bose began experimenting with perfume, and started his move into business.
, where he distilled the perfumes. After the initial success, he added hair oil and other toiletries like lavender water, Eau de Cologne
, milk of rose etc to his range of products. He also set up a new manufacturing unit at 6 Shib Narayan Das Lane in Kolkata. His products included the famous Kuntalin hair oil and Delkhosh perfume.
By 1900, he had created a printing press
and publishing house titled Kuntaline Press at 5 Shib Narayan Das Lane in Kolkata
which incidentally was next door to his perfume business. In 1903, he instituted the Kuntalin Puraskar and encouraged young writers to showcase their talent. A short story written by Jagadish Chandra Bose was the first recipient of the Kuntalin Puraskar. Later Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's first printed publication Mandira won the Kuntalin Puraskar.
Bose was a bicycle enthusiast. He himself could ride the bicycle and taught his friends how to ride it. In 1903, he along with his brother Jatindra Mohon Bose established the first Indian-owned cycle works the H. Bose and Co, - Cycles at 63-1, Harrison Road. The company was also the distributors of the Rover
bicycles. It was one of the first among his Swadeshi
ventures. He also learnt how to drive a motor car. In 1900, he bought a two sitter motor car and used to drive it himself. He established the Great Eastern Motor Company and set up a repairing unit, the Great Eastern Motor Works in Park Street.
. He began recording his friends in a leisurely fashion. Some of the first people recorded by H. Bose included his uncle, Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose, P. C. Roy
, and his good friend Rabindranath Tagore
. His company became known as "Bose Pathe Recordings" which later became "H. Bose Swadeshi Records". By 1907, the demand for Bose's recordings grew so great that he began producing his own cylinders
for recording. H. Bose was a well known patron of the Swadeshi movement
and many of his records covered this subject.
in India. He used Autochrome Lumière
slides for his photographs. He was the founder president of Sporting Union.
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, manufacturer of Kuntalin hair oil and Delkhosh brand of perfume. He was the first Indian to manufacture gramophone
Phonograph
The phonograph record player, or gramophone is a device introduced in 1877 that has had continued common use for reproducing sound recordings, although when first developed, the phonograph was used to both record and reproduce sounds...
s. Many of his businesses spurred from amateur pursuit
Amateur
An amateur is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without pay and often without formal training....
s.
Early life
Bose was born in 1866 in MymensinghMymensingh
Mymensingh , pronounced moy-mon-shing-haw, is a city of Bangladesh situated on the river Brahmaputra. It is the headquarters of the administrative unit Mymensingh District. Mymensingh is the anglicized pronunciation of the original name Momenshahi, referring to a ruler called Momen Shah. The cadet...
, where his father Haramohan Bose used to stay, the ancestral home of the family was in the village of Jaysiddhi, in Mymensingh District
Mymensingh District
Mymensingh is one of the districts of Dhaka division, Bangladesh, and is bordered on the north by Meghalaya state of India and Garo Hills, on the south by Gazipur district, on the east by districts of Netrokona and Kishoreganj, and on the west by districts of Sherpur, Jamalpur and Tangail...
. According to Michael Kinnear, Bose was born in 1864 at his ancestral village. After passing I.A. he took admission in the Medical College Kolkata
Medical College Kolkata
Medical College,Kolkata was established 1835 as Medical College, Bengal in Kolkata, India as the first college of European medicine in Asia...
. While a student at the college, he suffered an accident where his eyes were scarred in acid. After recovering, he quit his medical career. In 1890, Bose began experimenting with perfume, and started his move into business.
Career
In 1894, Bose started his own business in perfume manufacturing, the H-Bose Perfumers at 62 Bowbazar Street in KolkataKolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, where he distilled the perfumes. After the initial success, he added hair oil and other toiletries like lavender water, Eau de Cologne
Eau de Cologne
Eau de Cologne or simply Cologne is a toiletry, a perfume in a style that originated from Cologne, Germany. It is nowadays a generic term for scented formulations in typical concentration of 2-5% essential oils. However as of today cologne is a blend of extracts, alcohol, and water...
, milk of rose etc to his range of products. He also set up a new manufacturing unit at 6 Shib Narayan Das Lane in Kolkata. His products included the famous Kuntalin hair oil and Delkhosh perfume.
By 1900, he had created a printing press
Printing press
A printing press is a device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium , thereby transferring the ink...
and publishing house titled Kuntaline Press at 5 Shib Narayan Das Lane in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
which incidentally was next door to his perfume business. In 1903, he instituted the Kuntalin Puraskar and encouraged young writers to showcase their talent. A short story written by Jagadish Chandra Bose was the first recipient of the Kuntalin Puraskar. Later Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's first printed publication Mandira won the Kuntalin Puraskar.
Bose was a bicycle enthusiast. He himself could ride the bicycle and taught his friends how to ride it. In 1903, he along with his brother Jatindra Mohon Bose established the first Indian-owned cycle works the H. Bose and Co, - Cycles at 63-1, Harrison Road. The company was also the distributors of the Rover
Rover (motorcycles)
The Rover Company was a British bicycle and motorcycle manufacturer before it began the manufacture of motor cars. Rover was established in 1878 by John Kemp Starley in Coventry to produce bicycles. The company developed and produced the Rover Imperial motorcycle in November 1902...
bicycles. It was one of the first among his Swadeshi
Swadeshi movement
The Swadeshi movement, part of the Indian independence movement, was an economic strategy aimed at removing the British Empire from power and improving economic conditions in India by following the principles of swadeshi , which had some success...
ventures. He also learnt how to drive a motor car. In 1900, he bought a two sitter motor car and used to drive it himself. He established the Great Eastern Motor Company and set up a repairing unit, the Great Eastern Motor Works in Park Street.
Sound recording
In 1900, Bose began to make sound recordings privately, after he had acquired an Edison phonographPhonograph
The phonograph record player, or gramophone is a device introduced in 1877 that has had continued common use for reproducing sound recordings, although when first developed, the phonograph was used to both record and reproduce sounds...
. He began recording his friends in a leisurely fashion. Some of the first people recorded by H. Bose included his uncle, Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose, P. C. Roy
Prafulla Chandra Roy
Prafulla Chandra Ray was a Indian academician, a chemist and entrepreneur. He was the founder of Bengal Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals, India's first pharmaceutical company...
, and his good friend Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore , sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European Nobel laureate by earning the 1913 Prize in Literature...
. His company became known as "Bose Pathe Recordings" which later became "H. Bose Swadeshi Records". By 1907, the demand for Bose's recordings grew so great that he began producing his own cylinders
Phonograph cylinder
Phonograph cylinders were the earliest commercial medium for recording and reproducing sound. Commonly known simply as "records" in their era of greatest popularity , these cylinder shaped objects had an audio recording engraved on the outside surface which could be reproduced when the cylinder was...
for recording. H. Bose was a well known patron of the Swadeshi movement
Swadeshi movement
The Swadeshi movement, part of the Indian independence movement, was an economic strategy aimed at removing the British Empire from power and improving economic conditions in India by following the principles of swadeshi , which had some success...
and many of his records covered this subject.
Achievements
Bose was the pioneer of color photographyColor photography
Color photography is photography that uses media capable of representing colors, which are traditionally produced chemically during the photographic processing phase...
in India. He used Autochrome Lumière
Autochrome Lumière
The Autochrome Lumière is an early color photography process. Patented in 1903 by the Lumière brothers in France and first marketed in 1907, it was the principal color photography process in use before the advent of subtractive color film in the mid-1930s....
slides for his photographs. He was the founder president of Sporting Union.