The house of antiquities

They were the cynosure of all eyes then and they received the most deserving space in a house. Radios, the only means of entertainment in the bygone era, are now slowly disappearing.

However, there are some who still give it a pride of place in their homes. Preserving these pieces and tuning into  rustic sounds in this era is GB Ravichandra.

“Radios and old music players are rugged and have an unsophisticated beauty. Not technologically complicated, they play pure music and are not hindered by digital sounds,” says Ravichandra.

His collection includes pre-Independence Philips radio and turntable crafted inside a wooden stand, His Master’s Voice gramophone, Fountain radio and Philips Prestige radio, Murphy radio. He also has a collection of walkman sets, roll cameras and some of the rear vinyl records. Now a vintage collection, they led a life of misery before Ravichandra gave them a second lease of life.

The Philips turntable and radio, which is crafted and enclosed in a homespun wooden chamber, was in pieces and was used instead of a ladder to paint the walls by its ex-owner. The other radios were all lying lifeless — some in the attic and the rest in scrap shops — and had lost their charm. But for the past 15 years, they are leading a life of refinement  in Ravichandra’s house.

“The Philips radio and turntable holds a special place in my house (in the living room) and in my collection. Years ago, this was used as a ladder to paint the walls in one of my friend’s place. It was painful to watch this and I asked him if I could repair and use it,” he recalls. After this, he found a mechanic, who repairs gramophones. It took him three years to put all the pieces into place and bring it to life. The tunes coming out from this old tuner thrilled him. Thus began the search more such sets. Be it an official trip or a family outing to any city, he makes it a point to visit the Sunday Bazars there and collects the shortwave machines. “I do not buy them at random. In case I find them to genuine and authentic, I do not hesitate to pay whatever it costs to possess them,” he informs.

It is not just the radios or music players that add a rustic charm to his house. There are  other incredible pieces collected by the family in the house like the mechanical cuckoo clock. The first job of the day for the family is to “take turns in adjusting the weights of this clock,” he says jovially. While his wife collects shot glasses from different countries and old brass utensils, his two daughters collect shells and shopping tags.

These  are displayed neatly in the house. He says, “Without their support, my passion would not be alive. Normally, people say ‘why are you getting all these junk into the house?’  But mine is a family with unique hobbies and my daughters are already asking me what I will gift them (from my collection) when they go away,” he laughs.

Ask him if these pieces are tough to maintain and he says, “You just have to keep them clean and use them frequently.” He wishes to send out a message on preserving these pieces of history through his hobby. He says, “Elders and antique stuff have to given respect. With smartphones ruling the era, younger generation have no clue about these items. The simple technology of these priceless pieces from the past are meant to be understood.”

(Ravichandra can be reached on [e-mail])