Handmade with love

At The Bombay Lettering Company, Sanjana Chatlani strives to bring back the love, joy and appreciation of handmade and hand rendered scripts, proving that the pen is mightier than the keyboard

- SAMREEN KHOJA

THE INTERNET TODAY IS like a Pandora’s Box, it comes with a plethora of opportunities. From making a living out of posting food pictures on Instagram to bringing the most unlikely of ideas, the internet has redefined the meaning of art. But with the change comes the risk of losing traditions that have their own unique charm. Calligraphy being one such tradition. Luckily, the tribe is far from gone.

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

I have come across people who do not remember the last time they used a pen and a paper even to write something as simple as a to-do list. However, there is something personal and luxurious about handwritten cards. Sanjana Chatlani, an ex-corporate employee from the luxury brand management space is the ideal example of an individual who turned her passion project to her ultimate entrepreneurial journey. Founder of The Bombay Lettering Company, Sanjana Chatlani started her journey like many others who took the leap and turned their passion into something bigger.

She tells me that she came across calligraphy by accident. “I was never really into calligraphy or fine art. I just happened to stumble upon calligraphy and some calligraphers from the USA on Instagram. I was fascinated and was introduced to a whole new world. Instagram is like a rabbit hole, it just sucks you in and I started discovering a lot of calligraphers. I flew to LA to do a two-week course to hone my skills in pointed pen calligraphy.”

She is currently training under master calligrapher Achyut Palav for Devanagari and is the student and mentee of master penman Barbara Calzolari from Italy and has learned with renowned calligraphers from across the world.

LEAP OF FAITH