Our Story

Royal Book Foundation was established to honour the legacy of Shri Puran Chand Chowdhry — a publisher who believed that books have the power to rebuild lives.

During the Partition of India in 1947, Shri Chowdhry was among the countless families forced to flee their homes in what is now Pakistan. Like so many others displaced by that tragedy, he lost everything — his home, his livelihood, his community. He arrived in Ajmer, Rajasthan, with nothing but the determination to start again.

In Ajmer, he founded Royal Book Agency in Purani Mandi. What began as a modest publishing venture grew, through years of perseverance, into a formidable publishing house. Royal Book Agency went on to publish works of Hindi literature and academic textbooks — putting books into the hands of readers and students across the region.

His sons carried on that legacy, building their own publishing and printing ventures — Ravi Prakashan, Vikas Printers, Pragati Prakashan, and Vikas Guide — each rooted in the same belief that books matter and that the work of putting them into people's hands is work worth doing.

This foundation carries that spirit forward. We believe that access to books should not be a privilege. If you want to read but cannot easily afford or obtain a book, we want to help. One book, one reader at a time — continuing the work that Shri Chowdhry began over seven decades ago.