Did you shake up the bottle before use? It's possible it may have settled. Beyond that, I have no idea what may have caused the problem you describe. I've used a lot of India ink over the years, some of it quite old, and never had any problems with it. When it dries, i.e., when the alcohol evaporates, it shouldn't smudge. Note that this first comment is in reference to India ink, not Indian ink. Generally, the basic ingredients of India ink are shellac, alcohol, and lamp black.
You wrote Indian ink.
Indian ink is an entirely different type of ink, also known as Chinese ink. Indian ink is water-based. Its basic ingredients are water, gum arabic (as the binder,) and black pigment (generally made from ground burned bone.) Indian ink is the stuff used for writing Chinese and Japanese characters with a writing brush. It is often sold in block form with a depression cast into the block into which water can be placed and used in much the same fashion as solid block watercolors. It's also sold as ground powder to be mixed with water and premixed in bottles. Indian ink is not waterproof and, given any moisture, will smudge when rubbed.
Is it possible you used Indian rather than India ink?
so maybe it has been standing there for years.
