Inks and Pens

Recently one of my close friends Sharad, inspired by his boss, started using a fountain pen for the fulfillment of his writing requirements. This inspiration inspired me too, and I soon found my faithful Parker roller ball (blessed be his soul) replaced by a new, non Parker fountain. And guess what? I quite love it! It definitely would hard, if not impossible, to go back to the gel and roller now. I now wish that I had taken Mrs Chaddha's advice (my 10th grade English teacher who quite hated me and my handwriting...more the former than the latter) and had turned to fountain pens (and cursive writing books too).

It is firmly established that the fountain pen gets out the best in you as far as handwriting goes (remember your 6th grade teacher instructing you to use one? Remember your not giving a damn about that instruction?). But there is also a certain degree of refinement and sophistication associated with it; it has that certain vintage quality to it. The myriad kinds of nibs, inks, ink - suction mechanisms and bodies all come together and fuse to give birth to a wide spectrum of pens from which one can take a pick - from the desi ones that can be purchased for under 15 bucks and have life spans of a few months, to all the Crosses, Watermans, and Mont Blancs, which with their gold nibs, exquisite engravings and gold/silver(platinum?) exteriors (and perhaps a few diamonds here and there) can diminish your savings account by anything between a couple of grand and a couple of lakhs.

But there is something more to it; something more fundamental. Something which makes the fountain pen the perfect writing instrument. The nib of a fountain pen, over time, is shaped by factors which are very idiosyncratic - the way you hold the pen, the amount of pressure you apply, and the angle at which the pen glides across the paper. The nib, which culminates the process of transforming your thoughts into words, is shaped by factors which are very specific to you - which belong to you. I feel that this gives birth to a certain intimacy, a certain oneness, between you, and what you write.

Silly notions of a silly Romantic eh?