CHENNAI: It was unusual to find a seven-year-old cousin, based in the US, who spends his vacation time (in Chennai) scouting for Rs 1 notes to put to his piggy bank collection. During his last visit, this reporter was even dragged to the bank with the prospect of finding more additions to his stock. This, considering he had run out of relatives and friends to charm into opening their wallets and digging deep until they found his hidden prize. Apparently, this interest in not-so-common-objects doesn’t stop at 7 or 27 for that matter, as the reporter found out. It seems these days — old stamps, coins, and postal cards are passe for the roaming treasure wanderer. Enter a new breed of collectors, that have each created a niche for themselves with a parade of unlikely collectibles. Take for instance Vijay Shekar, a 36-year-old Public Relations executive, who has been filing newspaper cuttings dating back to as early as 1991. He says, “My first clipping was Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination. It is very personal to me because that’s when I decided to stock important news clippings that caught my attention.” However, what makes Vijay most proud is his edition of The Statesman — August 15, 1947. He says, “I have the first page of The Statesman paper, both pre-independence and post-independence.” In fact, he even went to Calcutta and requested them for an Independence Day copy or any other important news they could provide.Vijay beams with pride as he leafs through crinkled, yellow cuttings that include September 11, the Burj earthquake, Mother Teresa’s passing, Lord Ganesha drinking milk, the US attack Iraq and so on. He explains, “My compilation is not on the basis of the name of the newspaper, but on the importance of the event, especially if I have a personal connect.” But Vijay disappointment is rather evident when admits to not having one of the landmark moments in Indian cricket history — the World Cup of 1983.One other person who shares Vijay’s passion for ‘different’ collectibles is, Amuthavanan (40), a sales manager, who chooses to go a more antique route. Radio stations might be on the upswing these days, but ironically a radio set is not a sight easy to come by. Neatly stacked amid his home theatre are his proud possessions — 25 senior radio devices (complete with pull out antennae for static) that were built between the late 50s and 60s.With a current collection of 25 radios, he scours auctions and markets to find more. He reveals, “I have actually been collecting radios for very long, but my interest towards listening to them started from the age of five.” A passing piece of trivia, he shares is that the music output from such archaic radio sets, produce a medium wave frequency, that is quite different from an FM. Here, the sound travels from one place to another, and so there is a disturbance in the frequency, which might be an irritant for some, but is definitely more authentic to the radio experience. Most of these radios are imported and cost anywhere between Rs 5,000 and Rs 15,000. He gestures, “I have brands like Grundig, Sava, Philips and Telefunken.” By visiting different auctions in India, he handpicks his choices wherever they can be found. “With radios, unlike other collectables, you are not as likely to get ripped off by scrupulous characters who deal in fakes.” The authenticity of the product would perhaps never be a problem to Thejeswi Sukumaran, an interior designer, who collects bangles. She says, “I was inspired by my mother’s bangle collection and that’s what got me started right from my childhood days.” In fact, looking around — all four corners of her room are decorated by these mini-wheels of colour. From traditional wood designs, brass and glass, to beads, she has nearly 74 dozen bangles and 34 kadas (single thick bangle) meticulously arranged. “I even have the tiny bangles that I used to wear when I was a kid.”She also has coffee mugs and perfume bottles in varying shapes and sizes on her shelf. At this rate, we wonder whether anything makes the dustbin!
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