It was in the year 1954 that a humble photo studio named “Ajantha Arts”, specializing in black and white photography, first opened their shutters in the town of Parappanangadi in Malabar. The technology and art was new to the small town, but the studio was greeted with enthusiasm. The studio, over time, incorporated technological advancements in photography along with new ideas and built their brand “Ajantha” — which became one of the most valued names in the field.
Through years Ajantha continued its journey with the new trends in photography. Ajantha, that small studio opened in a small town, gradually grew into a household name and within a short span of time became one of the most popular brands in the Malabar region. Ajantha spread its wings and opened studios in other towns where they repeated their success.
In the year 1972, Ajantha opened a Black & White Studio in Mysuru and a year later another studio in Chemmad, a town adjacent to Parappanangadi. Ajantha launched a manual colorlab and studio in the year 1980 in Tirur, which was the first of its kind in Malabar, thus opening a whole new chapter in the art and business of photography.
The management opened a colourlab in the heart of Kozhikode in the year 1987 and aptly christened it "Ajantha". The semi-automatic lab was upgraded into a computerized colourlab in 1994 and later expanded, opening branches in many towns including Manjeri and Perinthalmanna.
In the year 1995, Ajantha opened a computerized colour lab in Tirur and the next year yet another one in Manjeri. In 1998, the town of Vadakara was brought under the wings of Ajantha with the opening of a digital studio and colourlab, another first in the region, which had the state-of-the-art technology and modern facilities to cater to the customer needs and requirements.
As the new millennium dawned, in the year 2000,Ajantha launched their digital studio & colourlab at Edapal and Kottakal. 2002 upgraded the studio to digital colour lab at Chemmad. Cementing their success story, in the year 2004, Ajantha opened their studios in Ponnani and Ramanattukara.
With the advancements in technology and the digital gadgets, the tools of photography is ever changing. The art and aesthetics of it, however, is not as malleable as the tools and gadgets. That is where Ajantha made its mark. We flashed first in the year 1954. And from then on, the light only got better and brighter.