Between 1934 and 1936, Agashe envisioned opening a factory branch of the Syndicate in his hometown of
Bhor, and began cultivating 2,000 acres of land for the plantation of
sugar cane. In 1935, he began employing tenanted farmers of the local gentry and independent farmers as producers or transportation workers of the sugar cane for the syndicate in the village of Bhorgaon. By 1936, he had licensed or purchase 12,000 acres of farm land to support the syndicate, being lauded for reviving the local economy and consequently receiving further land grants from bankers in
Akluj and several politicians in the
Bhor State.[9]
After Agashe established the syndicate's headquarters at the
Commonwealth Building on Laxmi Road, the
Mahratta Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture declared the sale of 300,000 shares of the syndicate, with the first share going at Rs. 25 in January 1935.[10] Between 1935 and 1937, Agashe toured several states and
jagirs within the
Deccan States Agency, promoting the syndicate at several village
gram panchayats.[9] In July 1937, C. E. Aitken, the
superintending engineer of the Deccan Irrigation Circle raised concerns about the syndicate's factory to
Sir Geoffrey Thomas Hirst Bracken, reporting that the syndicate had
sanctions, although they had the machinery, and were practicing the
open pan system of sugar cultivation and were growing from their own seeds.[11] By 1937, the syndicate's factory produced 35
hundredweights of sugar.[12]
In November 1937, Agashe ordered sugar cane processing machinery from
Škoda Works in
Czechoslovakia before the outbreak of
World War II. Following
Adolf Hitler's rise to power and the
German occupation of Czechoslovakia, Agashe considered retracting his order, but received the ordered machinery before the
Reichswerke Hermann Göring took over Škoda.[13] He began construction for the first factory in April 1938, and finally established the syndicate's first sugar cane processing factory in the village of Bhorgaon in March 1939,[14] further purchasing an estate and the surrounding lands as a means to look after his own sugar plantations,[15] with the syndicate's principal factory soon producing 150,000 sacs of sugar per annum by 1940,[16] selling the sugar under the trademark Shree, with the village
panchayat renaming the town
Shreepur.[14] In 1943, Agashe's donation to the
Deccan Education Society led to the establishment of the
Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce in Pune, named after the syndicate.[17]
After
Indian independence in 1947, Agashe was able to expand the syndicate's production to 1000 tonnes of sugar cane processed per annum by 1950.[18] In 1950, the
University of Bombay surveyed the syndicate's
labour conditions.[19] By 1953, there was strong opposition to Agashe's role as the managing director of the syndicate from his critics, with the syndicate involved in several allegations of duping shareholders and depositors in the early 1950s.[20][21][22] Agashe, in response, published a 400-page report criticizing his detractors of corruption and factionalism based on evidence that his critics were backed by his competitor
Karamshi Jethabhai Somaiya, who had previously shown interest in purchasing the syndicate.[23][24][25] In 1954, the syndicate advertised in the publication of the
Mahatma Phule Museum, where Agashe was on the board.[26] In July 1955, the syndicate was among the several other sugar factories that filed appeals with the Labour Appellate Tribunal, Bombay, to settle matters between it and the
worker's unions regarding the high rate the court had decreed for the sugar factories' to pay towards the
provident funds of its employees.[27] Agashe died in June 1956.[28] He was survived in business by his sons
Panditrao Agashe and
Dnyaneshwar Agashe.[29][30]
Under S. L. Limaye, K. V. Champhekar and G. S. Valimbe: 1956 — 1970
Agashe left the syndicate in a strong position.[29] With a
decentralised management, S. L. Limaye took over as
chairman of the
board of directors of the company, serving from 1957 till 1990,[31][32] while K. V. Champhekar took over as
managing director of the company from 1957 to 1962,[33] followed by G. S. Valimbe from 1963 to 1969,[34] until Agashe's sons Panditrao and Dnyaneshwar became joint managing directors in July 1970.[29][34]
The several senior managers of the company aided
Panditrao Agashe, given his considerable youth when he joined the board of directors in 1957.[35][36] By 1958, the syndicate also maintained a permanent office in
Solapur and
Shreepur, Maharashtra,[37] with the syndicate celebrating its
silver jubilee in 1959.[38] Between 1958 and 1966, the syndicate financially aided several farming communities around the
Malshirastaluka, including those regions affected by the
Panshet dam flood in 1961.[39]
Under Panditrao Agashe and Dnyaneshwar Agashe: 1970 — 2009
Beginning in the 1970s, under Panditrao and Dnyaneshwar Agashe, the syndicate manufactured
liquor in
Shreepur, Maharashtra,[47] specialising in
whisky production under its several flagship brands.[48][49][50] The syndicate was one of the first companies to produce a range of government-approved liquors after the
Maharashtra state prohibition,[51] called
Indian Made Foreign Liquor.[52] In 1978, Panditrao retired as joint managing director leaving Dnyaneshwar as the sole managing director.[53] By the early 1980s, the syndicate also briefly engaged in the business of metal printing.[1] In October 1980, the syndicate was surveyed on its impact on Maharashtra's
rural economy by the
Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics.[54] Under Dnyaneshwar, the company launched a
brandy in partnership with
Camus Cognac.[55] In 1984, the company sponsored a sports tournament in
Dadar.[56] In 1986, the company sponsored a
squash tournament.[57] In 1988, the company shifted to being a
cooperative.[58] By 1989, the syndicate was considered a leading manufacturer of alcohol in the country.[59]
In 1990, Dnyaneshwar took over as chairman of the board of directors for the syndicate upon the death of S. L. Limaye,[32] a position he would serve until his death in January 2009.[60] In 1991, a test plant developed from research funded by the
United States Agency for International Development was installed at the syndicate which controlled pollution during the manufacturing of industrial alcohol.[61] That same year, Dnyaneshwar's son
Mandar Agashe joined the syndicate's board of directors,[62] going on to become a joint managing director with his father by 1994.[63] Dnyaneshwar's younger son,
Ashutosh Agashe, was appointed to the board of directors in 1996.[64][65]
By 1998, the syndicate began marketing
ayurvedic medicines, health care products, and bulk raw materials.[1] It was also involved in the manufacturing of
food products and
veterinary medicine.[66] That same year, the syndicate hosted cricket tournaments in Pune.[67] In 1999, Mandar resigned as joint managing director,[68] going on to found the syndicate's sister company Brihans Natural Products Ltd. in 2000.[69] The syndicate began promoting ayurvedic
skincare products made by its sister company, Brihans Natural Products Ltd.[70] That same year, Ashutosh was appointed as joint managing director.[71]
By 2002, the syndicate also manufactured alcohol-based chemicals.[72] In 2005, the syndicate entered a partnership with Howling Wolves Wine Group of
Australia which planned to set up a
wine production base in India.[73][74][75] The partnership was made with Baumgarten & Walia Ltd., a wholly owned
subsidiary of the syndicate.[76] That same year,
Radico Khaitan signed an agreement with the syndicate for acquisition of their liquor brands Brihans Napoleon Brandy, Brihans Premium Whisky, Brihans Grape Brandy, Tropicana White Rum, Calcutta Dry Gin, Lord Nelson Rum and Red Russian Vodka in line with their domestic growth plan.[77][78][79]
Under Ashutosh Agashe: 2009 — present
In 2009, upon Dnyaneshwar Agashe's death, Ashutosh Agashe was appointed chairman and managing director of the syndicate.[80] In 2013, the syndicate sold its liquor manufacturing arm to Radico Khaitan.[81] In 2014, the syndicate was involved in the Brihan Karan Sugar Syndicate Private Limited (BKSSPL) trademark 'Tango' scandal.[82] In May 2021, during the
COVID-19 pandemic in India, Ashutosh and the syndicate donated
oxygen concentrators to hospitals in
Shreepur, Maharashtra.[83][84]
^"भाग गेला, शीन गेला" [The part went, the lustre went]. Kesari (in Marathi). 1 February 1952.
^""अगा उपाय बळे पांगू. पहाड नको." —
ज्ञानेश्वरी" ["Efforts should not be made to weaken a grand mountain" –
Dnyaneshwari]. Kesari (in Marathi). 2 August 1953.
^"शेरावर नफा हा स्वार्थ" [Profit on shares is selfishness]. Kesari (in Marathi). 3 November 1953.
^"आशुतोष आगाशे श्रीपूरकरांच्या मदतीला धावले" [Ashutosh Agashe rushed to aid Shreepurkars]. Tarun Bharat (in Marathi). 9 May 2021.
^"आशुतोष आगाशे यांच्या कडून श्री. सेवा हॉस्पिटलला ऑक्सिजन कंसन्ट्रेटर" [Oxygen concentrators gifted to Shree Seva Hospital by Ashutosh Agashe]. Surajya (in Marathi). 12 May 2021.