K. Lakshminarayana Bhattar (27 July 1904 – 16 December 1985), popularly known as Bhima Bhattar, was an Indian businessman and founder of
Bhima Jewellers. He pioneered the concept of ready made
jewellery
Jewellery (or jewelry in American English) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment such as brooches, ring (jewellery), rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the ...
in Kerala with the establishment of Bhima Jewellers with his brothers at
Mullakkal
Mullakkal is an area in Alappuzha district in the state of Kerala, India. It is part of Alappuzha municipality. This is the main town center of the Alleppey town.
The Mullakkal Rajarajeswari Temple is a Hindu temple in Alappuzha, Kerala, Indi ...
,
Alleppey
Alappuzha (, आलप्पुळ) or Alleppey is a municipality and town on the Laccadive Sea in the southern Indian state of Kerala. It is the district headquarters of the district, and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvana ...
, the first of its kind in
Kerala
Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
. He was the co-founder of ''All Kerala Gold and Silver Merchants Association''.
Early life
He was born in a
Shivalli Madhwa Brahmin
The Shivalli Brahmins are a Hindu Brahmin community mainly in Tulunad region of South West India. They are divided into two groups, the first of who follow the Dvaita philosophy founded by the Vaishnava saint Madhvacharya of Udupi are called S ...
family in
Udyavara, near
Udupi
Udupi () also known as 'Odipu' () is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the administrative headquarters of Udupi district, and one of the fastest-growing cities in Karnataka. Udupi is one of the top tourist attractions in Karnataka an ...
in 1904. Later he moved to Alleppey to live with his brother-in-law, and used to help out at his restaurant, Girija Nivas, after school hours. He started a small business of selling perfumes and cosmetics at Girija Nivas while working there.
Career
Bhatter realized that Alleppey had a market for silver jewellery, cutlery, and puja articles. He created a silver tumbler that proved popular. The business grew, and 22 carat gold jewellery sold well. He was the first ready-made gold ornament jeweller in Kerala. He was one of the first
diamond
Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of e ...
merchants in the Kerala state and also introduced
Navaratna
''Navaratna'' () is a Sanskrit compound word meaning "nine gems" or "ratnas". Jewellery created in this style has important cultural significance in many southern, and south-eastern Asian cultures as a symbol of wealth, and status, and is claim ...
jewellery.
Death
The demise of his wife Vanaja on 22 June 1984 came as a shock to Bhima Bhattar. He believed that she was the source of his tremendous success and good fortune. He died one year later on 16 December 1985, aged 81. Bhima Bhattar memorial Programs
and Bhima Bala Sahitya Award were conducted early by the Bhima Group in the memory of K. Bhima Bhattar.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhattar, Bhima
1904 births
1985 deaths
Businesspeople from Karnataka
Indian jewellers
People from Udupi district
Tulu businesspeople