Motilal Banarsidass Catalogue

[Nityānanda Miśra]

namo vaḥ

I received this catalogue from Motilal Banarsidass (MLBD) today. Forwarding the same as members will find it useful. As with Chaukhambha, I am not associated with MLBD in any capacity.

Along with the catalogue, I have some bad news to share (some members would know it already). When I rang up the number listed for the Mumbai MLBD bookstore in Mumbai today, I came to know it has shut down permanently. It used to be located at Bhulabhai Desai Road earlier near Mahalakshmi Mandir. I had visited this store several times in early 2000s and purchased many books there. The store had later moved to Nana Chowk near Grant Road Station. Later today when I spoke with Sh. Rajendra Prakash Jain, he told me that the footfalls at the Mumbai store had reduced a lot and they had no option left but to close it. There is more bad news. The MLBD bookstore in Bengaluru is also permanently closed. This was located in Jayanagar, 1st Block, very close to Cloud Nine hospital. I had visited this store also several times in late 2000s and purchased many here. And yet more. Sh. Jain told me the Delhi bookstore has also been reduced in size. He said they are moving to an online business model. It seems the MLBD bookstore in Kolkata also shut down long back. It is very sad to see one of our oldest and finest publishing houses shutting down bookstores all over the country. 

Meanwhile the Gita Press book shop in Kalbadevi, Mumbai, is still open. When I visited the store before the lockdown, there were many customers there. Footwear is left outside, the staff is very friendly, and there are discounts on almost every book purchased.

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Nityānanda Miśra

[Megh Kalyanasundaram]

Thanks again, for this. 

I had a printed copy of an older edition. This appears to be the latest version, or close. 

Indeed that does (worryingly) sound like one shut down perhaps too many.  

Incidentally, I had called 044-43535417 just last Friday, to enquire about a particular book. 

Best,

Megh

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[Rajkumari Trikha]

Thanks Dr. Mishra for latest updates. It is really sad news about MLBD, an oldest and prominent publisher. 

On the other hand it is very good that Gita Bhavana is doing well, although I read about its bad financial condition.

May God bless our heritage.

Rajkumari Trikha

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[Bijoy Misra]

The MLBD store at Chauk in Varanasi was my stop for many years.

Most of my India education began there.  The staff was friendly and

they would pack everything and then ship properly.  I loved the

service.  I guess the brick and mortar stores are going out of fashion.

Barnes and Noble is the only store that is operating in the US, but

the store has become a Departmental store.

With the proliferation of internet resources, the personal book purchase

is reduced only for new editions and keep-sake books.

Talking about books, I don't see many analytic inquiries in BVP that

would demand massive book examination. 

Best regards,

Bijoy Misra

[Raj Kombiyil]

Majority of us tend to leave it at that (it's sad/really bad..hope they do well etc.) We don't do anything to popularize yeomen service Gita press (btw, they're doing well. News about their bad fin situ is fake!), MLBD etc are doing.. esp amongst younger gen. Many are not even aware of these -- Amazon has become one stop solution. Maybe we can put out adverts, link to their websites (those who run their own websites), send info in WA groups to popularize. Just thinking out loud. Om Namah Shivaya🙏

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[Madhav Deshpande]

Bijoy Ji,

     I completely agree with your experience of MLBD.  I have been to their Delhi store several times and bought many books there.  I was personally in touch with the late Shri N.P. Jain.  It is sad to see their stores closing, but, as you say, physical bookstores are closing in the US, the business shifting to online outfits. Amazon killed the Border's chain of bookstores long before Covid 19 hit everybody.  Now major businesses are going out of business.  I don't know what the post-Covid recovery will look like, but it will not be a return to how the world was before Covid.  

  

Madhav M. Deshpande

Professor Emeritus, Sanskrit and Linguistics

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

Senior Fellow, Oxford Center for Hindu Studies

Adjunct Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, India

[Residence: Campbell, California, USA]

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[Venkatesh Murthy]

Namaste

Most of the people have become accustomed to reading pdf and soft copy books. They don't want to buy hard copies. I have not seen Indian publishers allowing soft copy purchases of new publications. This may be another problem why Indian publishers are in trouble. What is wrong in purchasing soft copy and downloading it from publishers? If they are afraid someone will distribute it to others freely. The hard copy also can be photocopied and distributed or it can be scanned and distributed. I am ready to pay for a soft copy download and many people are. Amazon has brought out Kindle and many many books are available. Why are Indian publishers lagging in technology?

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Regards

 

-Venkatesh