This business empire was born in a small clinic in Poovachal, a rural area south of Thiruvananthapuram. It came as a healing touch for the predominantly agrarian region and laid the foundation of a young Ayurveda physician’s ambition to do something for the people in his home town. The clinic still exists. In addition, there is a flourishing business, an Ayurveda hospital and colleges, all in Neyyattinkara in Thiruvananthapuram district. In the meantime, the Ayurveda physician – J. Hareendran Nair of Pankajakasthuri fame – (no prizes for guessing right) also added a Padma Shri to his name. But he still does not breathe easy. He aims high and feels that there is much more that he should be doing to make people aware of the benefits of indigenous systems of medicine and plants with medicinal values.
“I feel blessed to have been able to reach this far. Mistakes were many since I come from a family with no kind of business background. So I had to learn through trial and error and I am still learning,” says Hareendran, managing director, Pankajakasthuri Herbals India.
The youngest of three children, Hareendran had no godfather to bankroll his dreams. His father, Janaradhanan Nair, was a document writer and mother, Pankajam, a homemaker. “Like most youngsters in those days, I wanted to do medicine but since I did not have the required marks, the available option then was to become an Ayurveda physician,” he recalls.
His first appointment was as research fellow in the Regional Research Institute at Poojapura in the capital city. A transfer to Shoranur made him put in his papers and start off on his own in 1986. Manufacturing of medicines initially was begun in 1988 under the brand Sree Dhanwanthari Ayurvedics.
Competing with big and established names in the field was difficult for the young company. Although he struggled to gain a foothold, he did not lose his footing in the business arena. In 1996, his company began manufacturing Ayurveda products that were sold over the counter under the brandname Pankajakasthuri.
“At present, Pankajakasthuri has four divisions – classic products, over the counter sales, ethical products and FMGC – and 400 products. The manufacturing is done at Poovachal, near Poovar in Thiruvananthapuram district. Pankajakasthuri is also present in 13 countries,” says Hareendran.
The company has also made a mark in the wellness and therapeutic segments through Harmony and Panacea. Harmony has under its umbrella a range of Ayurveda-based rejuvenation treatments while Panacea is the company’s brand of therapies for various illnesses.
Scepticism about indigenous medicines and treatments persist, but Hareendran says that anyone can test his company’s over the counter products in any laboratory to find out the composition of the products.
Lifestyle diseases and the methods to treat them have been mentioned right from the Charaka Samhitha days, he explains. He feels that by ignoring or neglecting indigenous knowledge and local healers, we have lost the natural edge when countries like Germany, China and the United States are trying to explore and understand the rich plant wealth in India.
“Many such plants that grow in our backyards and road sides are destroyed by us. Although our grandparents were familiar with these plants and their uses, most of us cannot even recognise such plants, forget being aware about their medicinal values. Whenever I see workers clearing the undergrowth I stop and tell them not to destroy such plants in their ignorance,” he says with a smile.
A small garden of plants with medicinal values is maintained on the campus of the Pankajakasthuri Ayurveda Medical College. This is just one of the initiatives undertaken by him to make the public aware of their heritage of health care. He also hosts an interactive talk on television that has him expounding on the benefits of plants and indigenous methods of treatment.
He says contentedly that the Padma Shri he received has been the biggest motivation for him. “My wife, Asha, and I wept tears of happiness when we heard the news that I had been awarded the Padma Shri. It is a great honour for a self-made man from my background, if you look at the pantheon of people who have been awarded this national honour.”
Short takes
My mother’s name is Pankajam and that is how the name of the company was coined. When I became a father, I named my eldest daughter Kasthuri. The younger one is Kaveri. Both my daughters are students of the Pankajakasthuri Ayurveda Medical College.
Mohanlal and I have the same chartered accountant Sanal Kumar and that was how I became acquainted with the actor. He agreed to become the brand ambassador of Pankajakasthuri and over the years he has become a good friend.
Factfile
Pankajakasthuri is Kerala’s first ISO 9000 certified company in Ayurveda medicine.
The first self-financed Ayurveda Medical College in Kerala is Pankajakasthuri Ayurveda Medical College.
Pankajakasthuri Panchakarama Centres, a ready-to-use Ayurveda spa experience package under the name of Harmony and Pankajakasthuri Jeevanam retail clinics are initiatives of the group.
