IncenseInTheWind The Incense Hunter: One Aromatics (Auroville)

Thursday, 13 July 2017

One Aromatics (Auroville)

One Aromatics is a brand of incense sold by One Village, a UK importer and distributor of fair trade goods made in poor or disadvantaged communities. The company was founded in 1979. Their range of incense is made by the Auroville community in India (they offer 12 scents, each with 12 sticks, for £24 with free UK postage). The place sounds and looks fascinating. Here's a 1971 film about it. As an ageing hippy, it really appeals to me. I like the ideal of people of all countries living together in harmony. I love it. And I like that they are using traditional Indian skills in order to fund the community. So I want to support that. But at the same time I am a little uncertain regarding Westerners coming into India, and then utilising Indian skills and traditions to make products which they sell to the West. I suppose, I don't feel the authenticity of something like Balaji, which is a true Indian company, which makes and sells its products in India, and some gets exported. That's not to say that I think that what companies like One Aromatics, Aargee, Happy Hari, The Mothers, Fiore d’Oriente, etc, are doing is wrong, far from it - it's just that I don't feel as fulfilled dealing with these Western companies, as I do with the Indian companies because of the buffer between me and the producers. I like the direct connection I get with the Indian companies. I like the authenticity. I like the feel of the culture. Also, the prices of the Indian companies is usually less than that of the Western companies.

I suppose, thinking about it a bit more, what I would really prefer, is for Western companies to distribute authentic Indian incense under the original brand names of the companies, giving credit where it's due, and also bringing the cultures together, because then we have shared brands and products, rather than importing them in Western packages, under a Western brand, exclusively for Western audiences. When I put up my reviews on my incense Facebook account, which is widely read by Indian incense manufactures and distributors, I get a greater response to reviews of recognisable Indian brands, than of Western brands like Aargee.

Conclusion: The Auroville community is interesting, so I'd like to explore more incense from them. These One Aromatics have not impressed me, but at their best they are decent everyday scents - but they can also be a little crude and one-dimensional.

Contact details: One Aromatics email: progress@onevillage.org phone: +44 1608 811811