K. C. Das

Krishna Chandra Das (K.C.Das)
Native name	কৃষ্ণ চন্দ্র দাশ
Born	1869 Bagbazar, Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India
Died	1934 (aged 65) Bagbazar, Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India
Residence	Bagbazar, Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India
Nationality	British India
Other names	K.C. Das, Inventor of Rossomalai
Occupation	Businessman, Confectioner, Entrepreneur
Years active	1900-1934
Organization	K.C.Das Pvt.Ltd
Known for	Inventor of Rossomalai, Canned Rossogolla
Predecessor	Nobin Chandra Das
Successor	Sarada Charan Das
Movement	Bengali renaissance
Spouse(s)	Shwetangini Devi
Children	6
Relatives	Bhola Moira
Website	www.kcdas.co.in

Krishna Chandra Das (1869-1934), more commonly referred to as K.C. Das, was a distinguished Bengali confectioner,^[1] entrepreneur, businessman and Bengali cultural icon^[2] of the early 20th century. Born in the year 1869 in Bagbazar, Kolkata, India, Krishna Chandra was the only son and successor of the legendary Bengali confectioner and sweetmeat inventor Nobin Chandra Das.^[3] Krishna Chandra was a versatile enthusiast with a spirit of scientific exploration. He had number of original innovations like developing an electric loom, a soda fountain machine, and did extensive research on homeopathy as well as eastern and western classical music.^[4] Krishna Chandra Das became an iconic figure in the 1930s Kolkata with his original creation the “Rossomalai”^[5] and the vacuum canned “Rossogolla”,^[6] which were later popularized and promoted throughout India by his family organization K.C. Das Private Limited, founded by Krishna Chandra’s son and successor Sarada Charan Das.^[7]

Historical Background

Nobin Chandra Das left his business and legacy of innovative confectionery to his only son Krishna Chandra Das (1869-1934). Krishna Chandra proved equal to the task and enlarged the inheritance of his father’s genius in the art of Bengali sweetmeats.^[8] He also pioneered an exploratory spirit in the family confectionery business, enabling it to grow further as a leading Indian confectioner.^[9] However it did not start smoothly for Krishna Chandra. Having an immense liking for scientific innovations and machinery Krishna Chandra initially started a mechanical and scientific workshop at Bagbazar. His primary focus was to develop the technology required to scientifically modernize and revamp the Bengali sweet confectionery.^[10] Unfortunately his mother Khridmoni Devi^[11] vehemently opposed to the idea of redefining Nobin Chandra Das’ confectionery in the light of science and experimentation. This was the prime reason which drove Krishna Chandra (K.C.Das) to break out of his father’s confectionery and create an original development as an extension to the family business under his own title. His vision to imbibe scientific methodology was soon realized and rewarded in terms of economic and technological success. It is probably largely due to the pioneering efforts of K.C. Das that the “Rossogolla” is widely regarded as the national sweet of India.^{[12] [13]}

Life and Family

Besides being privileged to have the legendary “Nobin Moira” as his father, Krishna Chandra also inherited a well-known confectionery legacy from his mother’s family. His mother, Khirodmoni Devi, was the granddaughter of Bholanath Dey, better known as “Bhola Moira” in the history of nineteenth century Bengal. "Bhola Moira" holds a place in Bengali folklore and culture, not just as a professional confectioner but as an accomplished poet-minstrel.^[14] Krishna Chandra was married to Shwetangini Devi, who was known to be a great beauty of her time. They had five sons and one daughter. In 1930, Krishna Chandra started his first shop, “Krishna Chandra Das Confectioner” with his youngest and most talented son,^[15] Sarada Charan Das.

Contributions and Legacy

Krishna Chandra’s major contribution was the introduction of the canned Rossogolla and the creation of “Rossomalai” in the year 1930, which became perennial favorites. To market his innovations, Krishna Chandra opened a new confectionery shop at Jorasanko (in 1930) with his youngest enthusiastic son Sarada Charan Das. From there he popularized the canned Rossogolla, which was the first and only canned dessert manufactured in India at that time.^[16] This was the inception of the “K.C. Das” confectionery company, which was later enhanced and legally reestablished as K.C. Das Private Limited^[17] under the Companies’ Act of 1946 by Krishna Chandra’s son and successor Sarada Charan Das. Krishna Chandra died within four years of the opening of the company, leaving the affairs of the nascent company in the able hands of Sarada Charan. Today K.C. Das Private Limited is widely acknowledged for their original creations such as “Rossogolla” and “Rossomalai”.^[18][19]

See also

• Nobin Chandra Das
• Sarada Charan Das
• Bengali Cuisine
• K.C. Das Grandsons

References