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Steta Publishers was a writing and brand language consultancy that ran from 2012 to 2016. We are no longer available for projects. Our founders now work here and here. 

Discovering the World of Printing – Half a Day at Pragati Printers

18/7/2014

12 Comments

 
Recently, I had the privilege of visiting Pragati Offset Printers in connection with one of our projects — a book. Before I visited Pragati, I just knew two things about them — that they were the best in India and that they were in my city, Hyderabad. After I visited Pragati, I discovered the many reasons how they became the best in India and also why they will probably remain there. So, what really sets them apart? It’s one word, as you may have guessed, and it is Quality.

My co-worker on the project, a talented and thoughtful designer, travelled all the way from Jaipur to oversee the production of the book. He has been a Pragati enthusiast for years and it was difficult not to be bitten by the bug. In fact, thanks to him, I got a free tour of Pragati.

We moved quickly away from the well-lit, air conditioned front office and pre-production departments to check the progress of our own project at the printing department. It was a huge space — like a massive shed. It was dark and noisy. Machines hammered away their jobs rhythmically and alarms of various pitches went off from one machine or the other. Machine operators in teams of 5-7 went about their work with a sense of purpose. No air conditioning here and lighting just where it was needed. I reminded myself that this was the center of all the hard labor; this was where the actual job of offset printing was done.

My idea of a machine till then was a desktop computer. But these machines were giant machines — some running the length of a few hundred yards. Pragati has invested in cutting-edge printing machinery from Japan and this entire space is dedicated to Komori and Mitsibushi machines. Seeing these machines in action and seeing the results they produced, made me feel like a star. Get my autograph! I have seen the wonders they produce — works of art, nothing less. And then there are the men behind the machines. Cut to a snippet of conversation around the production of our book. There are a lot of pictures in our book – most of them black and white.

Designer colleague: The images are not there yet. I want some more warmth in these pictures. You understand?

Pragati staff 1: Yes, we can certainly rework these. I think we may get better results if we increase the amount of yellow a bit and also mellow the cyan a notch.

Self: (Thinking): Warmth in a black and white picture? Sure. I know exactly what you mean. Yellow and cyan in that picture over there? It may seem odd to you, but I see only black, white, and few shades of grey!

After more than an hour of trying to get warmth into the black and white images, we have a few prints to compare. By this time, there are at least 6 of the best brains in printing at our workspace, helping us make up our mind. They are trying to make sense of which greys are warm. There’s some sort of deadlock. Designer colleague is sticking to his guns that the output can be bettered. I keep nodding my head, not very convincingly, I am afraid. I found all the prints to be more or less the same. Thank God I did not attempt to become a designer, ever. Then something interesting happens. One of the Pragati staff says it is best to compare in daylight. We are in a dark space, remember? All of us troop out into the daylight with these huge sheets of paper. Then they start the discussion all over again. It was interesting to see all these men haggle over the many shades of grey. If you think men don’t have a sense of color, think again. I’m told there were a few hundred other issues that had to be sorted out — from the binding to the front cover of the book and from the embossing on the front cover to the details on the back cover of the book. Eventually, all things were sorted out and the book went to print.

Whether in the pre-production department, the production or printing department, or the post production departments such as packaging and binding, each and every employee wears the Quality badge like a badge of honor. Each one whom I listened to, and each one whom I saw at work, worked with a commitment and a zeal that was almost infectious. It almost seemed that each department was waiting to spot a snag that the previous department in the chain of production overlooked. But most of all what was truly amazing is the willingness of the staff to satisfy the customer. No compromise.

Urmilla Chandran
12 Comments
christabel
21/7/2014 03:24:35 am

Interesting picture you painted of Pragati Printers. I guess the next time I come across a book printed by them I'll be thinking of all the shades of cyan and yellow that went into its black and white pictures :-P

Reply
Urmilla
21/7/2014 03:55:51 am

Thanks, Chris. Visiting a place like Pragati is an eye opener of sorts. There's just so much to learn in a place like that. As you say, the next time we look at a black and white picture, it will not be just a black and white picture.

Reply
VJ
22/7/2014 10:11:27 am

I had a similar experience in a different context. I know exactly what "no compromise" feels like...difficult but very hard to uphold in our rapidly changing circumstances. Great to hear that there examples adhering to it...makes me want to visit them as well. A very interesting account indeed...

Reply
Urmilla
22/7/2014 04:07:40 pm

Thanks, VJ. I was very impressed by the experience of the people who work at those monstrous machines. They are able to tell you that such-and-such picture as seen today in print will look "like this" (a little faded with how much every amount of cyan and yellow etc) in 5 years from now and "like this" 10 years from now. I mean these kinds of things wouldn't even enter my head. It was nice to get a sneak peek into these conversations. An uplifting experience in all.

Reply
Praneeth
23/7/2014 03:27:34 pm

Book publishing and printing one of those rare industries where art, technology and people are delicately balanced. Years back I had been to Pragati to evaluate them as my vendor for a coffee table, pictorial biography book. Was equally awed as you, and was proud too! Any way I got the job done in Singapore. After seeing that I was all the more impressed with Pragati, world class and in our backyard! The only reason why I went with Singapore company was because of the bulkiness of the book and the binding quality.
Thanks for sharing this Urmi, I went down some sweet memory lanes.

Reply
Urmilla
28/7/2014 09:34:48 pm

Wow! So good to hear about your experience, Praneeth. Thanks for sharing. You said that so well - book publishing is indeed a rare industry that gets people from art and technology together. And the best in this world is right here at our good ol' Hyderabad. I do feel proud.

Reply
Sampath
24/7/2014 08:35:47 pm

All I can say is why the hell did you not invite me :). Just as Aamir says in 3 Idiots, I am fascinated by excellence, no matter the topic. BTW, what is the book about (sorry if you've already talked about in earlier blog posts) and where is Pragathi located?

Reply
Urmilla
25/7/2014 12:12:42 am

Thanks for your thoughts, Sampath. Apologies – the next time I am on any such adventure, I’ll ensure I inform you in advance. Pragati is in Red Hills near Lakadi-ka-Pul. You are so right - let us continue to be fascinated by excellence!

We wrote the text for an art book called High Relief by the artist Himmat Shah. This book covers the history and process behind three most fascinating high relief walls that the artist created in Ahmedabad in the late 1960s. To be honest, I had no clue what “high relief” was till we had to write this book!

Reply
Ashish
25/7/2014 01:14:35 am


Printing as a function requires extreme care to detail. Because once printed, its forever. While Pragati is by far the country's leading printing solution providers, printing itself is a marvel we see everyday.

Through Newspapers.

Its an everyday war. Fitting the copy and pics in great tandem. Meeting the deadline. No time to experiment, but its still got to be the best. All this while maintaining a particular layouting which the readers relate to. That is what fosters loyalty. Tough stuff.

Nevertheless, it happens every single day.

Reply
Urmilla
26/7/2014 08:40:57 pm

Thanks, Ashish. What you say is so true – there is a sanctity to the printed word (unlike the online world where you can change text at a moment’s notice). I liked the way you call newspaper publishing an “everyday war”. It is – you are so right.

While I marvel at this mind-blowing efficiency of newspapers, I can’t help rue the fact that standards are falling drastically. I used to rate The Hindu highly for its standards of English as also for its publication standards. It’s a pity that even this paper is no longer what it used to be.

This gives me an idea for another blog post, thanks Ashish!

Reply
Gingee C
27/7/2014 11:57:50 pm

Interesting experience by a first time visitor to a printing press.The management of Pragati Printers would be more than pleased with the observations by an unbiased visitor.They are unlikely to read this blog coming under Steta unless the blog is sent to them.

Reply
Urmilla
28/7/2014 11:24:09 pm

Thanks, Gingee. I am sure that the management team at Pragati are used to praise from all corners – well deserved too!

You are right, there is probably no way for them to know about this blog post unless we make them aware of it. I’ll reach out to the team in Pragati who helped us with the book. Many thanks for your note.

Reply



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    Authors

    Steta's founders, Urmilla Chandran and Armeen Kapadia author this blog. 

    We love letting our thoughts (crazy, stupid or smart) out for some fresh air.


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