The poo-tique paper entrepreneur

Elephant dung may not seem like a great business opportunity on paper. But ‘Haathi Chaap’ is an innovative business that utilises just that to make paper. The brand was founded by paper entrepreneur, Mahima Mehra and her business partner, who could smell opportunity in elephant poo when the people around were being put off by the odour. Today Haathi Chaap is a thriving business offering a variety of attractive paper products. Though elephant dung paper has been made earlier in Sri Lanka and Thailand, Mehra’s Indian innovation has a story entirely its own.

Mind in the dirt

The idea of making paper from elephant dung pooped up a few years ago, when Mehra and her paper producer, Vijendra Shekhawat decided to walk up a hill near Jaipur to visit a shrine. Most people around preferred going up on elephant back. As the two were climbing, surrounded by pachyderms, they saw the path littered with dry elephant dung. It struck them the waste matter looked somewhat like the raw fibre used to make paper. They soon got into collecting and testing mode, unfazed by the unsavoury prospect of having to work on piles of elephant excrement, and eventually emerged with usable sheets of elephant dung paper. Mehra branded it ‘Haathi Chaap’ (print of the elephant) and in 2003, the business was founded in Delhi.

This set the unique ‘Haathi Chaap’ growth story into motion, which has seen an entire range of products being developed from elephant dung paper – notebooks, stationery, photo albums, frames, bags, cards, tea coasters and other novelties. The paper was initially exported to Germany for four years before launching in India in 2007. Mehra’s experience in the handmade paper industry helped in establishing and running Haathi Chaap. But the business struggled in the first few years. It was only in 2007-08 that revenues really started picking up. As of 2012, the brand was being sold at 40 outlets across India and also exported, with total revenues of Rs. 35 lakh.

From poo to paper

The process of making paper from elephant poo begins with collecting dung from various elephant stables. It is then thoroughly washed with water, cooked with salt and washed again with hydrogen peroxide. After drying and sorting, it is beaten into pulp. After mixing with water, it is lifted with a sieve-like mould to make paper. The sheet is placed on a muslin cloth, compressed in a hydraulic press and then dried in the shade. Sheets thus made are calendered to smoothen, cut to sizes and are then ready to be packed.

Organic values

Inclined to recycling and eco-friendly habits while growing up, it was quite natural for Mehra to set up an organic paper brand like ‘Haathi Chaap’. The paper also uses cotton rag as raw material. This waste collected from large textile mills across India would otherwise be dumped in landfills. And since the paper is mostly hand-made, energy consumption is very low. Added colours comprise vegetable and natural dyes with no chemicals being used. And the waste water from washing the dung is even let out into the neighbouring fields as it has fertilising properties.

Mehra’s business model is based on rural manufacturing. Despite the challenges that come with running a small-scale enterprise, Mehra and Shekhawat are not keen on scaling their business. Smaller retailers are more accommodating when seasonal changes can delay deliveries as the pulp takes longer to dry, especially during the wet season. And not having to submit to big-retailer demands keeps the business sustainable. Haathi Chaap has partnered with boutique retailers across India and online stores like itokri.com and greenthegap.com.

Mahima Mehra is also exploring paper-making from camel dung and vegetable waste, and is working with NGOs and wildlife sanctuaries to keep pushing the organic paper envelope. Time will tell how she devises newer ways to alchemise waste into best.