Deekshith DV

Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal (DV)

Bantwal, Apr 7: In what looks like a dream in the woods, an agriculturist has a collection of around 125 antique clocks, with some being over a 130 years old.

Shashi Bhat Padaru, who hails from Vittal Padnur of Bantwal, owns a collection of antique clocks, lamps, idols, chimneys, petromax musical instruments, and has dedicated his residence to their display and storage.

Bhat has been preserving and protecting the antiques for the past 15 years, which he had collected from all over the world.

In his collection, Shashi Bhat includes a six and a half feet grandmother German-made clock, a seven and a half feet Japan-made Grandfather clock, which works on a weight mechanism after winding through the key. Both clocks weigh five kilos. Bhat's collection includes wall clocks from India, Japan, the US, Germany, Switzerland, and England-made wall clocks manufactured by reputed companies. All his collections are in working condition, and he maintains them properly.

Moreover, he has an anniversary table clock made in Germany, which is wound to function only once a year. Shashi also has pendulum clocks, cuckoo clocks, and chime clocks that indicate time by playing music.

In his possession, Bhat has various varieties of copper and bronze pooja articles, including lamps, 150 different varieties of kerosene chimney lamps, wooden Shavige makers, vintage tiffin carriers, drinking water containers, gramophone, phones, plough, piano, veena, harmoniums, and rice-weighing utensils. A unique variety of Ganesh's idols (Ganesh holding an umbrella) is in his collection. Bhat has a Lambretta scooter of the 1978 model and a Jawa bike of the 1969 model.

Speaking to daijiworld.com, Shashi Bhat said, "Once when I visited my relative's house, I saw various varieties of clocks. It was an inspiration to me to collect antiques. The present generation of youth is not interested in preserving antiques. Instead, they will be given to scrap. No one should throw away antiques. Instead, they should be handed over to people who are interested in preserving them."

He also added that construction work for a museum is in progress. It will be helpful to school-going children to know about the antiques, he says.

A music teacher from Bengaluru, Veena Gangadhar, donated a Veena. Ramaswamy from Mysuru donated a statue of Buddha, which is from Thailand and is about 75 years old, and K M Ramesh from Bannerghatta donated 200 record discs of a gramophone that contain old songs and movies, he added.