The fireworks begin here

On Qutab Road in Sadar Bazar is Royal Fireworks,one of the oldest firecracker shops in Delhi. The owner of the shop,Roop Kishore Srivastav,who is in his fifties,sits reminiscing about his family business while watching the Diwali crowd swamping this old market.

For many,bursting crackers on Diwali is a sheer waste of money and causes pollution. However,Srivastav has a different opinion: “When Lord Rama returned from exile to Ayodhya,his devotees burst firecrackers to produce smoke to ward off evil. So,I think it’s perfectly fine to burst crackers.”

In 1840,Srivastav’s ancestors established the company,Ram Parshad and Sons,which was primarily a manufacturer of fireworks. His family owned a factory at Azadpur where they designed and produced their own firecrackers. They also used to produce gunpowder for the military.

They shifted the factory to Alipur due to lack of space but,eventually,had to close it due to non-availability of good quality chemicals. A family feud ensued,which led to a split. Now,Srivastav says,all that is left is a store in Alipur and two shops in Sadar Bazar — Royal and New Royal.

Royal Fireworks stood out from the rest as they produced fireworks that floated on water as well as those that could be burst during the day,apart from their fabulous designs like Chinese Pagodas,Temples of Heaven and the Qutab Minar. Ram Parshad,who started the business,even dedicated one design to Prithviraj Chauhan,during whose reign their family had migrated to Delhi.

Their hardwork did not go unnoticed. They were awarded a gold medal and a citation by the government for the quality of their fireworks. Royal Fireworks has also designed arrangements (patterns in which the firecrackers were lit) for the Kings of Bhutan,Nepal and Afghanistan,as well as the British High Commission for the Guy Fawkes Day and the German Embassy for celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Ever since their factory shut down,they have been getting their supply from Sivakasi,the firecracker hub of the country,in Tamil Nadu. Srivastav says,“Earlier,people used to ask for simple rockets,phooljharis,chakkars and bombs. However,now we have started stocking up multi-shot rockets,which have 100 to 200 continuous shots. These crackers are in demand and cost around Rs 2,000,far more expensive than the normal firecrackers. The most expensive firecrackers we have this season are the 1,000-shot rockets priced at Rs 8,000,but they are mostly used at weddings.” He says the ‘Cock’ brand is the most popular.

Srivastav started helping his father at the shop while he was a child. He went to school in Delhi and aspired to become an IAS officer. However,he gave up his dreams to look after the family business following his father’s death.

Now,his daughter,Himani,is following in her father’s footsteps,but on her own terms.

“I completed my BCom from Delhi University but did not wish to study further since I’ve always loved to sit at the shop,” she says. Himani is confident that she can run the shop efficiently when the time comes.

“I already keep track of the goods in the godown and the shop,” Himani says.

Sagar Shah and Karishma Kuenzang are students of The Express Insititute of Media Studies.

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