A Legend in Labels passes away! RIP: Kartar Singh Dunglay…

Late S. Kartar Singh Dunglay

Sardar Kartar Singh Dunglay the founder and owner of Good Work Company New Delhi breathed his last in the intervening night of 7^th and 8^th of April 2013. He had been ill for the last few months, the end came peacefully. He was 78 years of age.

Kartar Singh Dunglay was extremely passionate about his work in the printing industry. He started his career in printing in 1955, a time when print had yet to evolve and was still in the primitive phase of its life cycle. He started as a screen printer and innovating there-in, was his passion. He always endeavored to think ahead of time while he and other screen printers continued to print manually, yet Kartar Singh developed, launched and exhibited a semi-automatic screen printing machine in an exhibition in Delhi. It was an effort ahead of its time. So passionate was he and indulgent to innovate that I am constrained to quote an incident from my own home. One evening Dr. M K Raina, at that time a senior leader in the management of Ballarpur Industries, later the CEO of Sinar Mas Paper, was at our home for dinner to meet my illustrious father Harbans Singh Sahni, the founder of brand “Weldon”. Dr. Raina was so impressed with the personality of my father that he compared him with his own mentor, Lala Karam Chand Thapar, the founder of Ballarpur Industries Limited, he said, “Sir, I can only say people like you who excelled, pioneered and achieved were extremely passionate and in love!!! They were in love with their work. In love as a boy is, with his new girlfriend. You live with her thoughts all the time, scribble her name on the notebook, write it on a stone, on a tree and she is on your mind all the time. Your work has really been your girlfriend! The passion delivered results.” When I met Kartar Singh Dunglay and saw his passion, Dr. Raina’s words were ringing in my ears. In a post on this blog titled, “Women who endeavored in the Indian Labels industry.” I wrote about his enterprising wife Kusum Dunglay who was mentored by him and had excelled in the self adhesive label business, I quote from that post,

“In the late eighties, I had the chance to meet a very talented screen printer Kartar Singh Dunglay of Goodwork Co. which had started to print in 1955. He is one of the elders in our industry from an era and class of people who were in love with their work as the youngsters are today with their girlfriends.”

He was a smiling and pleasing personality, eager to learn more defying the growing years. A Dedicated family man who gave enough room and mental space to his son Rouble Dunglay. In words of his daughter Penny Bhandari, “He was the most beautiful and divine person. His blessings will always be on all of us!”

Kartar Singh has many innovations to his credit; Metal labels, Transfer labels, Tattoos, Fancy Butterfly Labels and the list can just go on. He was the first one to set up a joint venture with a European company in the labels industry. He partnered with leading European label printers Reynders to set Reydunn in Manesar, Gurgaon Haryana India. Unfortunately the partnership fell apart and the both the constituents went their own way. Reynders set up their own wholly owned unit at Chopanki in Rajasthan. Such was the awe of Kartar Singh’s personality that Marc Reynders, owner of Reynders came over to my home for a dinner last month and despite having parted ways with Dunglays he said, “Mr. Dunglay is not well, I have to go visit him tomorrow before I go back home”

Kusum Dunglay has been the pillar of strength for Kartar Singh. She was mentored by him to run the label business from the front. She took the business to new heights and leading FMCG brands are their customers. Kartar Singh Dunglay has been a man for whom work was always been the reason for moving on. Kusum Dunglay says, “Even when he was critically ill in the last few weeks, he insisted and managed to come to the factory!” He was a caring parent, an indulgent business man and a great friend. We will miss “Sardarji”, as we all fondly referred to him. May his soul rest in peace!

Written by Harveer Sahni, Managing Director, Weldon Celloplast Limited, New Delhi-110008 April 2013