In 1940 Sri Kesavan Vaidyar, an ayurvedic physician started manufacturing an ayurvedic soap called ?Chandrika?, from a small town called Irinjalakuda in Kerala. When he first made 'Chandrika Ayurvedic Soap', Ayurveda was not very well known or used in non-medicinal products. In the beginning Sri Kesavan Vaidyar travelled on foot or by bus carrying the wooden case all by himself. There were harsh times when he even travelled by holding onto the ladder on the back of the bus and slept outside shops waiting for them to open, so that he could sell his product to them. Faith and belief in his creation,'Chandrika Soap' gave him the courage to persist with it. His belief and persistence paid of when people who used it realised its value and goodness and came back asking for more. Once people discovered Chandrika, there was no turning back for him. Sri. Kesavan Vaidyar went on to export Chandrika Soap to almost all the western, Middle Eastern and far eastern countries. Using the income from the business Sri. Kesavan Vaidyar set up a number of institutions so that people who were not as fortunate as he was could benefit from his good fortune. He established Lal Memorial Hospital, a charitable hospital so that the less fortunate could avail of basic medical services that were not available to them. He also established a nursing school to support this cause and to promote professional health care. He also established S.N. Public School, a public school, a public library and a teachers' training college believing that Education would help people empower themselves.