Siddheshwar & Company (Hubli)

As a kid, I remember seeing "Siddheshwar" on cash tables in restaurants. I would show that to dad and say "...see my name." Hoteliers, jewelers and all types of business people know one name- Siddheshwar -to keep their valuables safe and secure. The brand name Siddheshwar has a seriously strong reputation- just like it's safes. In fact I know people who are totally loyal to the brand. You want a safe? It has to be Siddheshwar.

Two years back, ever since I stepped into online marketing, I noticed few Indian brands which have been in the market for decades. The ones which I have seen and been with are Mysore Sandal Soap, Cycle Brand Agabathi, Monkey Brand Tooth Powder, Thakur Pedha of Dharwad and of course Siddheshwar. One of my colleagues, Chetan from Hubli was in contact with the owner and we planned a visit.

That's the factory building.


Neelakantappa Kammar, the founder started manufacturing safes at home in 1918. A natural talent, with a keen sense for quality, expanded the business over the decades. Today the company is head by the founder's grandson Raviraj Kammar, son of Late Guruputrappa Kammar.


The company makes a variety of safes- Hotel Cash Table, Temple Model, Sarafi Safe for jewelers, Burglar Proof Safes, Fire Proof Safes, etc.


A Hotel Cash Table. We learnt from Shivanand Hadanur, a senior clerk, that blue is the standard color.


The brand logo in steel.


We went around the shop floor starting with shaping machines and lathes. Most of the machines are pretty old. In fact one of the lathes is supposed to be 80 years old.


He's one of the two turners. Lathe operators are called turners.


This is a Shearing Machine, an imported model. There were other machines like bending machine, rolling machine, etc. - all imported few decades ago. One of the names- F.J.Edwards Ltd. London NW1.


A strong room door. Many banks are this company's customer.


The master sheet metal workers. These are the hands which shape the safes. Most of the work is manually done. In fact I was trying to locate a drawing, a vernier caliper, a height gauge... no. Nothing. This is amazing! While I was into manufacturing I could not imagine a moment without drawings, digital caliper, depth gauge, etc. These guys are truly amazing. In fact I saw numbers scribbled on floors or half-made products. I felt I was transported back to 1940 or 50s.


What ever the technology, the quality is not questionable. A dial lock or a number lock unit. This is manufactured here. Again most of the work is manual.


And this is the master lock maker, at his work place. The simple desk is the origin of one of the best locks. Locks which no one else except this master can open.


Lock & Keys. Why four keys? This lock operates with two keys- 1 and 2. Safes with this locking unit need both keys to lock or unlock. These are 10 lever keys- not very easy to duplicate. These were the biggest keys I had ever seen.


This is another strong room door in the making for a customer in Karnataka. Once finished the whole assembly could weigh around 3000kg. I wonder what would be size of the strong room to have a door of this size.


The tour was... what to say... never mind. I enjoyed it thoroughly. I was happy to be walking on a shop floor among machines and metal and metal-workers.

We said bye to Raviraj, Shivanand, Shadakshrayya, Basavantappa and few other members of this legendary organization I had come in contact with. I call it legendary because it's considered as a University for Safes & Locks, place where hundreds of people learnt the art of lock making.


I wish to see this brand for the years to come.

If you wish to contact the company, below is the contact info-
Siddheshwar & Co., (Hubli) Pvt. Ltd.
Siddheshwar Nagar, Bankapur Chowk
PB Road, Hubli - 580 020
Phone: 91-836-2247078 and 6576700
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