This is fun - a 3-in-1 packet of perfumed-charcoal incense, trademarked and marketed by Gopuram, a Chennai based company dealing in kumkum and other pooja products, though made by OPM (Omkar Parimal Mandhir) in Bangalore. I get this packet out of curiosity while ordering a selection of Thurga's incense from a dealer In Malaysia who I can't remember, and I can't find the order details, which is a shame, as I recall they were cheap, and did ship to the UK.
Anyway; I find this packet of incense interesting for a number of reasons. This is an own brand incense, which I find it curious in a country with around 5,000 different incense producers, so there would be no shortage of brands available. Notable though, unlike in the West, where information as to the maker of the incense is commonly concealed on own brand incense, is that the maker of this information, including their address, is clearly given on the side of the packer.
The 3-in-1 concept is hugely popular in India, and it appears that most Indian incense companies will provide at least one variation of the multi-pack in their range. These are mostly, but not always, perfumed incense rather than masala style (Hari Om did a 3-in-1 masala Mangala Jyothi Flora). Some examples (with scores): Veer 3-in-1 (29); Heera 4-in-1 (23); Aanchal 3-in-1 (20); Hari Om The Club (30); Forbidden Fruit Variety Pack (21); Aargee Ayurveda Variety Pack (20). I note that quite often the incense in the multi-pack (3-in-1 is the most popular, but there are also 5-in-1, 7-in-1 and other combinations) are fairly generic (musk, wood, floral, etc), and may not necessarily be scents that are sold individually by the company, so are sometimes created just for the multi-pack, as seems to be the case here.
Anyway; I find this packet of incense interesting for a number of reasons. This is an own brand incense, which I find it curious in a country with around 5,000 different incense producers, so there would be no shortage of brands available. Notable though, unlike in the West, where information as to the maker of the incense is commonly concealed on own brand incense, is that the maker of this information, including their address, is clearly given on the side of the packer.
The 3-in-1 concept is hugely popular in India, and it appears that most Indian incense companies will provide at least one variation of the multi-pack in their range. These are mostly, but not always, perfumed incense rather than masala style (Hari Om did a 3-in-1 masala Mangala Jyothi Flora). Some examples (with scores): Veer 3-in-1 (29); Heera 4-in-1 (23); Aanchal 3-in-1 (20); Hari Om The Club (30); Forbidden Fruit Variety Pack (21); Aargee Ayurveda Variety Pack (20). I note that quite often the incense in the multi-pack (3-in-1 is the most popular, but there are also 5-in-1, 7-in-1 and other combinations) are fairly generic (musk, wood, floral, etc), and may not necessarily be scents that are sold individually by the company, so are sometimes created just for the multi-pack, as seems to be the case here.
The scents are Floral, Fougre, and Chypre. They are curiously generic scents rather than anything specific - so, "floral" rather than "rose" or "jasmine". Floral, of course, is fairly common, especially for lower end perfumed-charcoal. However, I'd not come upon chypre and fougre as incense scents. Chypre is a citric, amber, and earth style perfume created by Coty in 1917, using the French name for Cyprus. The name has since been applied to the family of scents which use a similar accord (the overall impression, rather than the individual notes). Fougre or Fougère is another such accord, created as Fougère Royale in 1882 for Houbigant Parfum. Fougre is woody, fresh, and masculine, and is used in male perfumes such as Brut, Boss, and Tabac.
The sticks are 9 inches long, with 7 inches of charcoal paste machine-extruded onto a plain machine-cut bamboo splint. The sticks burn for around 30 minutes. The scents are all formulated from a perfume rather than essential oils. There is a generally agreeable perfume scent on opening the packet. This is budget stuff, but is professionally made. Locally, the packet costs 12 Rupees (about 12p) for 18 sticks. As is common in multi-packs, each scent is identified by the colour of the inner pack, though working out which scent is in which colour pack is less easy. We have a pink, a yellow, and a green inner pack, and the outer packet identifies Chypre as green, Floral as pink, and Fougre as blue. I assume that the blue Fougre is in the yellow pack, but I can't be sure....
The scent of the Fougre is quite masculine, and does remind me of Brut from my schooldays, when it was the most popular male fragrance among the boys (and girls). I tried it, but I found it too sharp and superficial. I developed my own scent from a blend of one part citrus, two parts musk, and three parts patchouli, based in part on Aleister Crowley's Ruthvah. Over time I reduced it down to mostly just the patchouli, which I still wear, though enlivened by any additional scent which takes my fancy for the day. Anyway - this Fougre has elements of Brut: it is gently masculine in a non-threatening schoolboy sort of way; it has elements of musk and wood and a delicate almost feminine sweetness, that just holds onto its masculinity in an intriguing way. It's a modern, playful, fun scent - curiously attractive in a way that Brut never was. There are vague floral notes, slightly herby, which could be considered lavender, and light touches of citrus now and again. Yes, I like it.
The scent of the Fougre is quite masculine, and does remind me of Brut from my schooldays, when it was the most popular male fragrance among the boys (and girls). I tried it, but I found it too sharp and superficial. I developed my own scent from a blend of one part citrus, two parts musk, and three parts patchouli, based in part on Aleister Crowley's Ruthvah. Over time I reduced it down to mostly just the patchouli, which I still wear, though enlivened by any additional scent which takes my fancy for the day. Anyway - this Fougre has elements of Brut: it is gently masculine in a non-threatening schoolboy sort of way; it has elements of musk and wood and a delicate almost feminine sweetness, that just holds onto its masculinity in an intriguing way. It's a modern, playful, fun scent - curiously attractive in a way that Brut never was. There are vague floral notes, slightly herby, which could be considered lavender, and light touches of citrus now and again. Yes, I like it.
The Floral (though more like pine disinfectant on the stick) is a little crude, especially when compared to the Fougre. It's a smudgy cheap scent - vaguely floral and "scenty" without being clear or interesting. I associate it with the sort of cheap everyday deodorant smell that some older women wear - generally cleaners or factory workers. They're not putting on anything expensive or refined - they just want something to mask any stale sweat. It's musty and stale and a bit cloying. There's an element of rose in it, the sort of "old ladies' knickers" rose that Chrissie often mentions. The smell of clothing that's been left in a drawer with some old rose petals in a bag. There's something old, damp, and vaguely unpleasant about it.
The Chypre initially smells not dissimilar to the Floral, though more floral and herby, less stale, damp, old, and less like rose. But it also has notes of pine. As it develops so the base notes start to emerge. Some musk, but also something more earthy, more herby or plant like. Touches of wild mushroom and truffle oil and chalk and marble and dusty mineral. Amber is now starting to emerge, and I'm getting to like it more. Yeah, it's OK.
All in all, the three scents have been more interesting and attractive than I suspected they would be. The Floral is not to my taste at all, but the other two, especially the Fougre, are delightfully playful, intriguing, and moderately seductive. I don't think I like this enough to seek it out and buy it again - these are after all modest everyday scents, nothing special - but I look forward to burning the remains of the Fougre and Chypre, though will give the Floral to the cats in the outhouse.
Date: Oct 2023 Score: 26
The Chypre initially smells not dissimilar to the Floral, though more floral and herby, less stale, damp, old, and less like rose. But it also has notes of pine. As it develops so the base notes start to emerge. Some musk, but also something more earthy, more herby or plant like. Touches of wild mushroom and truffle oil and chalk and marble and dusty mineral. Amber is now starting to emerge, and I'm getting to like it more. Yeah, it's OK.
All in all, the three scents have been more interesting and attractive than I suspected they would be. The Floral is not to my taste at all, but the other two, especially the Fougre, are delightfully playful, intriguing, and moderately seductive. I don't think I like this enough to seek it out and buy it again - these are after all modest everyday scents, nothing special - but I look forward to burning the remains of the Fougre and Chypre, though will give the Floral to the cats in the outhouse.
Date: Oct 2023 Score: 26
Hi Steve, I'd like to comment regarding the addresses we see on incense packs. I've become sceptical of just how many actual commercial producers of incense there are in India Steve (by commercial I mean producers with sufficient throughput to sustain an export line). I'm sure we've both seen hundreds of 'manufactured by' addresses on packs, often with establishment date claims that resolve to a PO box equivalent or an office building with scores of businesses registered there. I've been trying to unwind some of these small companies via business/tax records and it has been a frustrating exercise linking them to any actual production facilities. India's tax laws and business records are very 'different'. For example, if you are a single entrepreneur with no permanent employees you are essentially tax-exempt and can trade worldwide without registration, additionally tax avoidance (not evasion) is legitimate in law and can be considered taxation planning.
ReplyDeleteSo many of these incense companies appear on the market and then vanish just as quickly along with their websites and google email addresses. I'm becoming convinced that a large portion of India's branded incense exports are from these small shell companies who bulk purchase custom incense from established manufacturers, then rebrand and contract for repackaging/export. Essentially a one person operation, and a similar process employed by many legitimate western importers. If this is the case it makes me curious if the owners/operators are based within India or external to it. There is a country nearby who's Gov' subsidises trade practices like this. I could be completely wrong, but if true there may be far less actual manufacturers with export capability than might assume. Food for thought.
That is food for thought. It's interesting that only a handful of Indian incense makers do export. It might be possible that the proliferance of Western own brand incense is due to the difficulty for small operators to set up export sales. EL Incenses and Fragrances were an operation who had a significant aim to export to the West, and who seem to have now folded due to their failure to establish export sales. My assumption at this point is that the overwhelming bulk of Indian incense makers do not have any intention of exporting. Indeed, may not even have the intention of selling across India, but are content to sell locally. It will be for others to buy their incense and distribute it elsewhere. And that would have a limited interest on the "why carry coals to Newcastle" principle - why go to the expense of transporting incense from North to South India, when there are already plenty of South India incense makers? There would need to be selling point - that the brand is well known, or that the incense is very cheap. Very cheap is something that India specialises in most of all. And very cheap comes with cash flow risks due to low profit margins, so it would not be surprising that incense companies come and go so quickly - cheap and easy to set up, but consequently without the substance to continue when there are even minor problems. Even Paul Eagle of the legendary Happy Hari found he couldn't cope when shipping costs increased. While there may be thousands of incense makers, I think it is only handful who are truly successful enough to have their own factory. Many will employ their wife in a back room of the house, or get neighbours to roll the sticks.
DeleteI would love to read a comprehensive study of incense making in India. The AIAMA tells part of the story, but I feel they only represent those companies who own a factory and have significant enough sales to warrant membership. And of their members, only around 15% of production is exported.
I agree, many producers don't export and only supply the local market for a variety of reasons, packaging and logistics cost make no sense if your profit margin is low. And yes, the sustainable market for both craft and marginal producers will always be the home one, and I agree some my dip their toes in the export market only to withdraw and this could account for some of the transient brands we see. What I was mainly referring to is brands that have no traceable ownership other than the details supplied on the packaging.
DeleteOn a side note you might find it interesting that the office of Omkar Parimal Mandir is located just 2 streets away from the Parimal Mandir brand's manufacturing facility who make Yatra, Vedanta, Cosmic series etc. Photo of Omkar Parimal Mandir: https://i.imgur.com/SvuwTLC.jpg Photo of Parimal Mandir production facility: https://i.imgur.com/qQRTCjw.jpg Care to take a bet on where OPM's incense is manufactured/packaged/shipped Steve? :))
Ha ha. I see that I am not alone in looking up the location of incense makers on GoogleMaps!
DeleteI hadn't made the connection in name between Omkar Parimal Mandhir and Parimal Mandir, let alone the close physical location. But, then, it took me a long while to realise that SAC (Sandesh) and GR International were the same company.
Parimal Mandir appears to mean something like best temple, and is used by at least one other incense company - Siddhi Parimal Mandir in Pune.