What makes us TICK?

I hail from Jaipur, Rajasthan. A City with a rich history, culture, food and tales of valor. What does that have to do with collecting Watches you ask? It tells a story, it tells us that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. The eerie contentment someone gets by visiting an ancient monument from his city or his birthplace, the feeling of belonging to something timeless, etched in history, timeless in form and presence, the same feeling is what i get wearing a watch that has lived a life before me.

It's humbling in a way, that we are temporary beings in a permanent space. It sometimes puts you in your place as well, imagine going to a watch collectors meet wearing a Rolex Daytona Cosmograph you purchased/inherited (A legendary Swiss Chronograph watch famously presented to the winner of a grueling motorsport event - The Daytona 500) and you meet people there who had won theirs, it puts you in your place to some extent, does it not? But in a good way. It makes you realize that there are always people who have accomplished more than you, i call it the Highway Theory, no matter how fast and skillfully you drive, no matter how many cars you overtake, there will always be another ahead of you.

It's a Story in essence. Now that i look back at it, My Story with Watches began in 2003/04. It started with my fascination with the watch my father (A Doctor) used to wear back in the day. It was from a Reputed Indian manufacturer Titan, it had a Titanium Case (A rarity to this day) and had an electro-luminescent function. I remember coming from junior school early and pretending to fall asleep in my parents room till he used to come from Hospital and put the watch on his bed-side table. While my Parents had their lunch, i used to have a merry time with the watch, wearing it, looking at myself wearing it, heckling with the luminescent function again and again. I was in my own world as a 7/8 year old then and there. That was, i believe the inception of what watches are to me today.

Another source of inspiration for me i believe was my mother's father, he was someone who has had an impact on me not just as a person, but even for my family. He was someone who was the first one to show up and the last to leave in good times and bad alike. He was very fond of watches, wearing old school Indian brands, small case sizes, subtle dials. That was his style, he was also famous for giving his watch to anyone who gave him a compliment on his watch. Since i was so influenced by his personality and his style in general, my affection got further bolstered from him.

Coming to the thought process behind collecting, It's hard to boil down your philosophy or style in a phrase/line. I feel what works for me is something that is slightly off beat, slightly alternative. It does not mean i go for things that fly in the face of convention cause i feel that is not who i am, but something that catches an eye or raises eyebrows, that is the sweet sport for me. I feel this realization comes with a price, it takes at least 10-15 watches to realize where you are mentally and what clicks for you. For some it takes less, for some it takes them some while. I also feel perception changes with age, what is attractive to you at 17 years of age, might not be the same at 27 years, here i feel Jay Leno is a real inspiration as a collector here cause he is a prime example of recognizing how tastes can change with time, and learning to overcome it or not being a victim to this natural phenomena. Jay Leno was a Saturday Night Live host along with one of the most influential car collectors, and every budding singer who used to perform there to make a name for himself, the press and the paparazzi used to look at what Jay was driving that day, what was parked in his spot. On some days it would be a 1930's fire-truck, on some days it would be a World war 2 Van, and no one would make fun of his choice or dare question his choice because Jay knew what he was doing, and because it was him, people/critics would be like "yeah, I get it". So i feel that is when you are having fun as a collector, when you can wear a piece that raises eyebrows or drive a car that everyone stops and looks but people are like, "i dig that".

Another thought that returns to me again and again, and i believe is my mantra is, I see watches as tools, as instruments that aid and augment. That was their historical purpose, may it be a Doctor serving for Red-Cross in Africa using a pulsation scale on an old Universal Geneve or a soldier in the trenches of World War 2 using the telemetry scale on his Tissot watch to ascertain shelling distance from his position or a Tag Heuer Chronograph keeping times of F1 drivers like Clay Regazzoni and Niki Lauda in the 1970's. The same thinking is what i use to keep time in examinations using a Seiko Chronograph. The underlying essence in all of these applications is that watches, no matter how much precious metal is added to them, how many Pave and Baguettes are studded in them, are tools at the end of the day. That adds a sort of shabby mechanical charm to them, making them more blue collar than red carpet.

One of the most entertaining parts of the process of collecting watches is the hunt or the process of finding a watch, of finding THE WATCH. Whether it's scavenging through the dusty stock of a dealer in the old cities or walking through flea markets in cities and haggling with dealers for beat up pieces that have potential or seeing vendors with watches in tubs showing their waterproofing, the old school days as people call it. The process is enlightening and it makes you an extrovert in ways you can not imagine.

Another inspiration i feel helps me to look past the hype, helps me avoid crow behavior is "Attention to detail" or "a lot happening in a small place". It is one of the reasons why i am always drawn to smaller case sizes, double stamped watches such as the Rolex 1016 Tiffany stamped dial.

Smaller cases with complications such as the Seiko 7a-28/38 series, or Titan annual calendars are also pocket friendly way of wearing something interesting without breaking the bank, which brings me to my last and most significant thought that goes behind a watch, "it's not about the price". If a INR700 HMT (A Indian Government owned watch manufacturer) can bring you the same joy/chills as say a Rolex or an exponentially expensive Swiss/Japanese watch, i believe you have made it as a collector.

Lastly i believe watches are a way to convey that there is more to us that what meets the eye, there is more to us than what people see. It's a way to value the sub-text or look at the fine print of things. Not be entirely materialistic, enjoy the little things. Don't take things and oneself too seriously, "Life is short, eat dessert first". Be frugal in life but enjoy every now and then.