Legend has it that Mughal emperor Akbar had 100 bottles of ‘itr’. Jasmine, rose, kewda or mogra…the many splendoured potion of the past, once edged out by international perfume brands, is unleashing its heady scents in India once again.
Tagged as the purest non-alcoholic natural fragrance, itr is made with flowers and takes five to seven years to reach maturity. Packed into tiny colourful glass bottles, itr like wine gets better with time, says its growing tribe of aficionados.
“I used to wear high-end perfumes till I visited a friend’s place. The moment I entered her room, the air was redolent with exotic traditional natural perfume, which she had bought from Lucknow. I was so fascinated by the smell that I started using itr, especially the herbal fragrance,” Bangalore-based model Dipannita Sharma told IANS.
Deep Gupta, whose family has been in the business of making itr for the last 30 years, participated in The Itra & Sugandhi Mela organised by Delhi Tourism at Dilli Haat in the capital. He says the first-of-its-kind fair attracted buyers from both India and abroad.
Aaruti Kongo from West Bengal said the fair provided an ideal platform to take the business forward.
“Business-wise those three days were excellent. We sold itr worth Rs.4,000 per day and the profit was of 40 to 50 per cent. People were curious to know about the making process and after-effects and we were there to guide them. There were about 40 stalls with opportunities for both trade and retail business,” she said.
–Agencies