JOIN USCharles Dickens once said that “there was something very comfortable in having plenty of stationery”. The literary wizard would have been somewhat heartbroken had he stuck around long enough to see the world as it is today; a place where smartphones, tablets and computers have taken over the domain of pen and paper.
Ironic as it may seem, reams of paper have been used to write about the approaching annihilation of traditional methods of writing. But there are many who still believe that the lure of the pen will outlast the glamour of the phone.
“I love stationery and have a whole range of things like sticky notes, fancy journals, pencils and so on; just to pin myself down,” says Nidhi Srivastava.
“I have a special liking for fountain pens because of their hipster or status value as well as for the fact that they are supposed to improve one’s handwriting though that did not happen in my case.”
Talking about the charm of these rudimentary office supplies, Nidhi adds, “For me, it is because of the need to go offline and do something concrete and beautiful with my hands. After spending too much time on computer and phone, you sometimes want a break. But over the years, they are becoming status symbols too. Not a surprise though, considering the high prices of most of these items.”
Her friend Sachit Arora is also a fan of fountain pens; something which prompted him to go the ‘old school way’. “I recently bought a couple of Pilot Iroshizuku Inks. They come in a variety of colours with names derived from expressions of beautiful Japanese natural landscapes and plants. And I recently sourced a sharpener from USA too,” he says.
“The digital medium has many benefits but I think for me it’s the tangible realness of paper that I turn to for warmth and comfort,” says Kriti Bajaj, freelance writer and editor.
“I’ve been keeping a diary since the age of 13; I scribble in a new travel journal every time I travel; I make lists of the good things in my life in a notepad shaped like a piece of cake; I make scrapbooks for all the disorderly bits and bobs that find their way into my life but I can’t seem to throw away.”
Kriti goes on to talk about how “the same physicality of snail mail drives many to send postcards or Christmas cards to friends around the world”. “For many of us, it’s become something of a tradition. I’ve made many friends online but there’s something special in receiving that first piece of mail in the letterbox that makes them seem so much closer,” she adds.
Moving away from the soft lights of nostalgia to the stark realities of business, the numbers are somewhat mixed though.
“We used to stock diaries and notebooks till even a few years back,” says Nikhil Saxena, design head at ‘Happily Unmarried’.
“But over the last four to five years, sales have come down drastically, primarily due to the use of smartphones. Nowadays notepads are the bestsellers on our site but I think it is purely for the ‘cool’ factor and not out of any particular love for stationery.”
Says Manavika Phukan, co-founder of handtribe.com, a platform where people from all across the country can make, buy and sell products, “Stationery is one of our most popular categories and there is a steady rise in sales for notebooks and cards on our website. Be it for day-to-day notetaking or sending a special message to loved ones, penning words on paper still seems to be the most popular choice.”
Numbers and reasons aside, there are times when one just has to pick up a pen and start writing. Because, as they say, “sometimes only paper will listen to you”.