Now a magazine for visually impaired

Titled White Print, the monthly magazine will be in Braille.

Starting May, visually impaired individuals in India will be able to get their monthly dose of leisurely reading. Titled White Print magazine, the monthly offering is being touted as the India's first English lifestyle magazine in Braille.

The English offering will be launched in the first week of May and will bear a cover price of Rs 30 per copy; annual subscriptions will be available at Rs 300 for 12 issues.

To be circulated throughout the country, the title will be printed at the National Association for the Blind in Mumbai and will have 64 pages of leisure content. The content mix of the magazine will consist of inspiring stories of the common man, review of audio books, gadgets, travel and hospitality, food related columns, politics, art and culture from across the globe. Adding a literary angle to the magazine, there will be short stories by young authors every month.

There will also be a reader's contribution column, where they can contribute content about anything that interests them.

Talking about the new initiative, Upasana Makati, founder and publisher, White Print, says, "India is home to 12 million visually impaired people, of which 56 lakh are literate. White Print is an initiative born to cater to the needs of the visually impaired community. Despite being a lifestyle magazine, we have incorporated a political column since none of our lives is complete without politics. Also, to add a literary touch to the magazine, we have a short story section for the readers. On the whole, White Print aspires to be a complete product that could be read by anyone from a college student to a working adult."

The company has tied up with Radio City to promote the magazine on air. She adds, "Radio is one of the most vital mediums, since it is the prime source of information and entertainment for the visually impaired community."

White Print is also present on social media portals such as Facebook and Twitter to reach out to a larger audience.

On how the company plans to monetise it as not many advertisers will be equipped with Braille versions of their ads, Makati says, "Advertising in Braille is something that companies in India have yet not ventured into since traditional print ads are not text heavy and focus more on attractive images and graphics. This in my opinion is a challenge and is also a step forward in the field of advertising. We have approached many brands to advertise with our magazine."

For the first issue of the magazine, Raymond has been brought on board as an advertiser.

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White Print Upasana Makati