Choosing a name that not only carries a family legacy but also the story of a community.
My grandad was, is, and will always be my idol. Though he passed in 2022, his legacy lives on through me. Listening to his journeys inspired in me the desire to do something for the country, and I made sure I achieved that vision.
Air Marshal Douglas George King-Lee, a distinguished officer in the Indian Air Force (IAF) who served for 37 years and reached the rank of Air Marshal. He was a pilot who served with distinction in various command and staff roles, including commanding squadrons and serving in leadership positions during his career, earning him the Ati Vishist Seva Medal (AVSM). He was commissioned in 1944 and held the role of Commandant of the National Defence College.
(BharatRakshak.com)
However, getting into the armed forces was something I couldn’t do, but serving in some capacity was always a goal.
“Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan” translates to “Hail the Soldier, Hail the Farmer,” coined by India’s second prime minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri, in 1965. The phrase honors both the soldiers defending the country and the farmers who are crucial for feeding the nation, particularly during times of food scarcity and war.
If I couldn’t work with soldiers, I could work with the farmers, and that is what I have done.
Choosing a name for the enterprise was not difficult because I had decided a decade ago that if I ever started something on my own, it would be called “Kinglee Xperience.” ‘’ Kinglee Creation was taken by my mother, and I wanted to take the Kinglee Xperience brand, as I wanted people to experience my journey. Notice there is no E in Xperience. The reason was that there were too many E’s, and initially I thought I could write it as KingleeXperience, but the name was too long for a single word, so I broke it into Kinglee Xperience. We are the X factor when it comes to a rural experience.
We make luxury niche cold-processed soaps that are expensive, but we put a whole lot of ingredients in them, from pure milk to oils to honey to herbs to butters, and the list goes on. To celebrate that, I chose the tagline, ‘Royalty in Simplicity.’ I asked an uncle to design the logo representing our women-centric approach, and he did a really fine job.
Now there is more to this than just a logo and a name.
I am an Anglo-Indian.
Anglo-Indian people are a distinct minority community of mixed-race British and Indian ancestry. During the colonial period, their ancestry was defined as British paternal and Indian maternal heritage; post-independence, “Anglo-Indian” has also encompassed other European and Indian ancestries (Wikipedia).
Ours is a small community, and the majority of Indians do not know what an Anglo-Indian is. Many are fascinated by the name, so in short, I tell people to call me ‘Lee Bhaiya’. When I take part in various exhibitions, customers walk up intrigued about the name, and it is a pleasure reminding them about our heritage.
One of the events was held at IIT Indore, around 120 km from where I stay. It was a hot day, and many people were coming up to ask us about our soaps. One gentleman comes up and says in Hindi,
“What is this name, Kangle Xperience? Are you Chinese? , che, chu, phee, pu”
Racism, at its core, but many in India are not educated when it comes to cultural respect. There is an inherent problem when it comes to our country, and if anyone says anything by mistake that upsets them, they are up in arms. So when I explain it to them, I do so in a way that is not confrontational; however, I do leave something to think about.
Many people don’t know about our community; many don’t want to learn. Usually they are not educated, and sometimes, without understanding what they are saying, they make fun of a community. All in jest. I hope I have explained it clearly. Many people don’t know what racism is or what it means.
This is what led me to write an article for the Outlook.
The second instance was when I was looking to sell my soaps online. As an entrepreneur, I prefer to support as many entrepreneurs as possible, so I promised myself that I would only sell it on platforms other than the established players such as Amazon and Flipkart. When talking to the proprietor of one of the the online site I had shortlisted to showcase our bathing bars, she commented,
“Can you change the name? it sounds like a travel company or some foreign company,”
I replied, “I am an Anglo-Indian”. This was a Bangalore-based company, and people there are well versed with the community due to the many Anglos in the city.
“You see, in India many fine…” I disconnected the call.
The third was when a local MLA (story to follow in another chapter) in his speech to the local crowd in Pandhana said that a foreigner had to come to their place to set things up. How did I know this? A shopkeeper who I knew very well shared this while having chai at his shop. We couldn’t stop laughing for a good 10 minutes.
The fourth was a statement that has irritated me to this day. A woman was visiting our small setup, and she was intrigued. Someone from Bangalore had set up their unit in such a small place. When I explained my journey and the fellowship, her comment left me shellshocked.
“You are doing so much for the farmers and the Adivasi community here, but what about the Anglo-Indian community?”
As I write this, I am working on an Anglo-Indian-centric platform.
A name not only reflects the work you’re doing, but it also carries a heavy burden. It carries the legacy of family, it carries the history of a community, and it carries an experience that needs to be Xperienced.
To be continued….