Merchants of Poona - Stories of Grit & Determination  (English, Hardcover, Mrunal Pawar)

What is the essence of Pune? Its climate, its culture, its commerce? All this and more have contributed to making Pune what it is today An all encompassing, accommodating city that welcomes not only a variety of people into its fold, but also diverse attitudes and businesses. Pune is one of the few cities in the country where the majority of business houses, both small and big, have been founded by people who came here from outside. They came with survival in mind and stayed on to fulfill their dreams.They came from remote rural parts of Maharashtra and across the borders. Many of them set up fledgling businesses in the attempt to earn a livelihood. They made efforts to assimilate into the unique ethos of the city and today they all proudly call themselves punekars. While some established niche businesses that have become synonymous with Pune, others set up industrial units that have gone on to become behemoths. Many of these names are very well known, others are more low profile, but each has played an important role in the development and economic success of the city.We have tried to put together a tribute to the people who later became a name synonymous to their business. Taking the late 1960s as the cutoff date for establishment of the business. These are some of the names that have helped to shape the business environment of Pune, introducing change and innovation and slowly but surely taking the city out of sleepy obscurity and onto the national and global stage.