A lucky find – HMT Rakhee

Today is Rakshabandhan, a day that celebrates the bonding between brothers and sisters. On this day, sisters tie a silken thread – Rakhee on their brother’s wrist praying for their long life and the brother’s promise to protect their sisters from every evil.

The house of HMT watches made a special watch in the early 70s to celebrate this festival with a ladies watch called Rakhee. A watch which is both unique as well as refined and was a perfect gift from brother’s to their sisters. It was released in two forms one as a pendent watch (a watch that can be worn around the neck) and the second one on a bracelet. The unique thing about this watch was its case which had a delicate Bidri work. Bidri craft is practised in Bidar-Karnataka, in Andhra Pradesh and in Maharashtra – bordering Karnataka. The metal used is a blackened alloy of zinc and copper inlaid with thin sheets of pure silver. (Source – Craft council of India). Each watch has a hand crafted case with Bidri work and thus each watch has a different and unique case making each HMT Rakhee watch unique and different from the other. These watches came with a 17 jewel hand winding mechanical movement. In my opinion, they are very rarely seen these days as their production stopped decades back.

Picture credit - Tarun Agarwal

Being a watch collector fills your life with excitement. The excitement that can be compared with the one felt by a pearl hunter or an excavator of artifacts. Most collectors talk about the role of luck, of being the right person at the right place. I believe more in the adage – “Harder I work, luckier I get”. But then I have days when luck shines upon me and the incident I am going to narrate here is of one such day and the story of my HMT Rakhee watch

Late in the year 2014, one night I was on call with my friend Jaideep and we were discussing HMT watches. Our discussion digressed to old/Vintage HMT watch advertisements and I started searching them on the net and came across an old HMT watch newspaper advertisement for sale. It was from the 70s and advertised HMT Rakhee watch. I was pleasantly surprised as I read through the advertisement and my admiration for the HMT watch company moved a notch higher. As we discussed, I told Jaideep that we should count ourselves lucky to even know that such an HMT watch even existed and that adding such a watch to our collection is nothing less than a distant dream. It was a Friday night and I had plans for the next day. I dozed off dreaming about HMT Rakhee.

Next morning, I took my wife to the city market area for shopping and quite forgot about the watch amidst the hustle and bustle of the busy market. We started back by afternoon to have lunch at Jaynagar. While driving back I spotted a small shop with a few watches at display. Much to the chagrin of my wife I decided to stop by and check them.  I stepped inside the shop and found the usual assortment of quartz watches on display. Though disappointed, I was also happy that I did not have to spend much time at the shop. As I was stepping out the engaging shopkeeper asked me if he could help me. I told him that I was searching watches with mechanical movements. He directed me to a neglected display case inside the shop. I decided to leave it at that, as we were getting late but the shopkeeper said – atleast take a look, you never know. I sighed and stepped back inside the shop, as my wife rolled her eyes in despair. I looked at the watches and to my utter astonishment there on a leather strap was an HMT Rakhee staring back at me as if asking me of what I was waiting for. A few minutes later I floated out of the shop with a light heart and a lighter pocket, a broad smile and an HMT Rakhee to my wife who stared at me with a magnifying gaze. Later that evening Jaideep was overjoyed with amazement as I narrated him the events of the day. Both agreed that it was nothing less than a great stroke of luck. Next, I bought the original advertisement of this watch and I treasure it now.

I have always believed that HMT watches are full of surprises, most attribute this to the numerous variants and models that were made by this company of which many are unseen and unheard. In my opinion it is also applicable to the collecting aspect of these watches as one might get and unseen gem at most unexpected places.

So that my friend was one lucky day for me which gave me a watch and an experience that I will treasure throughout my life.

New HMT Watch Showroom in Bangalore

I recently visited the HMT watch showroom at Barton Center, M G Road Bangalore. The showroom at unity buildings, J C Road was shut down and shifted to this new facility. Since, not many HMT watch fans are aware of the existence of this new showroom, I decided to share the sights of my visit through this blog.

Barton center is very close to the M G Road metro station on the main road

Barton Center - Its a famous landmark on M.G. Road 

HMT showroom has put a banner on its window which faces the road and an HMT Digital clock (top edge of the pic)

HMT watch showroom is on the first floor, a view from the tube lift

At the entrance of the showroom

The only showcase inside the Huge showroom, which is a property owned by HMT watches for decades. Other showcases were expected in a few days

Watches

It was good to meet Mr. Bhagwan,showroom manager and an old friend. Amidst closure of several showrooms, HMT opening a new showroom is nothing less than a pleasant surprise. So, next time you visit the M G Road, do visit the showroom. 

A Curtain Call – Closing down of the HMT Bangalore Unity Building Showroom

HMT Showroom Unity Building

HMT company showroom in the Unity buildings, J.C.Road was one of the oldest HMT showroom in India. This showroom was opened in the early 70s and had visitors from all across the country and world. My association with the showroom started with a phone call to enquire about the availability of HMT Pilot watches. Soon, the showroom became my favourite hang out.I met many interesting people at the showroom and learnt from their experiences.I shared some of these experiences through my blogs Link blog 1 , Link Blog 2 . Few months back,HMT watch company decided to close its showroom in a phased manner and this showroom was one of them.After the closure of the showroom, Mr Bhagavan has taken up the charge of the new HMT showroom in Bangalore at first floor of Barton Center , M G Road Bangalore.I shall be posting a blog soon on my first visit to the showroom.

A fellow collector,blogger and friend Varun Iyengar was at the showroom on the day of closure and below is an eye witness account from him.

My journey with HMT has been since 2009 where I used to visit showrooms just to see the vast collection of HMT watches wich I never used to buy. I always used to consider myself an enthusiast rather than a collector of sorts. Incidentally my first watch was a Janata art deco variant followed by a couple of Pilots and Sonas.

Some of the HMTs that I purchased initially were from either the two showrooms in Bangalore one in Unity Building and other being Jalahalli (CSD). I used to prefer the Jalahalli showroom during my initial years since it was near to my place of work. Later as time passed I shifted to Unity Building due to its location. I used to spend my Saturday afternoons at the Unity building showroom looking at the red velvet steps in the showroom filled with an array of watches from the HMT stables. All these are history today.

Sometime in mid 2010 I had for the first time visited the Unity Building in search of a Janata for my classmate/colleague who was pestering me for a long time. Though I did not get one but got introduced to Mr. Bhagavan who introduced himself first and later I introduced myself saying I am an academician (and a student of sorts). He also gave me his visiting card. This meeting still reverberates in my mind whenever I here Unity Building from someone. In the same visit I also happen to pick up HMT Pilot which I gave it to one of my friend later. I have never tried to ask technical questions to Mr. Bhagavan all these years but have never failed to ask for watches that I can pick up. I also remember asking him a HMT Jawan for which his reply was try hard you will find it and I don’t have it. Later in years to come I have picked numerous watches from this showroom starting from the very basic HMT Vijays and Varuns to the classy Chronograph. I have also left a series of watches like HMT Sweekars thinking that I will have time to pick up later (which was a mistake that I made). The Unity Building has now become hotspot for all the HMT watch collectors and enthusiasts to meet, exchange notes and impart knowledge. For the last few years it had become a routine to meet some fantastic people and learn something new. But the sad part is the showroom is gone for ever.

Last year in the month of September the news of HMT closure shattered the hearts of many HMT collectors and enthusiasts. Then the news trickled saying all the showrooms would be closed. The first one to bite the dust in Bangalore was the Unity Building showroom. I got to know they would close on a certain day, and was not prepared to go and meet Mr. Bhagavan there because I was not ready to confront a disappointment. But one of my friend (a HMT collector) forced me to come to meet him at Unity Building which turned the tables. That was the last day of the showroom. I just entered the showroom and saw Mr. Bhagavan was arranging the watches in boxes and the tables were shifted to the corners. I spoke with him regarding the imminent closure and wished him all the best. I also in the meantime asked Mr. Bhagavan’s permission to take a picture of him to which his reply was a stern no but later he obliged for the same. I thanked him for all the help and also thanked him for helping out people all these years. After a long chat with Mr. Bhagavan finally the time had arrived for me to depart with a heavy heart. I bid good bye for one final time to the HMT showroom and head back home. Thank you HMT and its professionals for all what you have done for these many years and good bye. Here are some pictures from the last day of HMT Unity Building Showroom.

Mr. Bhagavan from Unity Building

 

The Final Journey for the Showroom Begins

 

Empty Racks in One of the Oldest Showrooms in Karnataka

  

The Final Hurrah - Showroom on the Last Day