My dad is a collector of World War collectibles and a Article to that effect got published in Times of India supplement Downtown plus. I rarely appreciated his work and always thought that life would be so much better if he’d stop collecting the junk but today I realize the worth of his efforts.
Posted On Saturday, August 09, 2008
From written work to military attire, Viraf Bilpodiwala continues to gather world war collectibles spanning across the globe, finds out Irene Fernandes
Viraf Bilpodiwala displaying Second World War treasures
The world war may have ended 63 years ago as a chapter in our history textbooks but for Viraf Bilpodiwala it has been a life long passion to gather collectibles associated with the Second World War (WWII) from all over the world. The 54-year-old businessman, a resident of Dadar Parsi Colony, is the proud owner of several original world war artifacts. Since 1969 he has been collecting literature to army fatigues. “As a school kid, I was taken by awe watching war movies like The Bridge Over The River Kwai, and Battle of Britain. From that point my interest in the subject began and over the years I have managed to lay my hands on everything related to WWII,” says Bilpodiwala.
His expansive collection includes literature pertaining to the WWII that spans over 1000-odd books, posters that were printed then, magazines and several old newspaper cuttings. Most of them are illustrated and some were got hold of when they were discarded from school libraries. That is not it! He also owns a used uniform that belonged to Rommel’s army in North Africa plus a few silver badges and his favourite - the Nazi helmet and the Nazi cross, which he purchased from local store in London. “The American and the British helmets are easily available, the Nazi war items are no longer available anywhere, not even in Germany,” explains Bilpodiwala
Bilpodiwala has travelled the world over to touch the heights of his passion. While some were a treasure hunt, the others were easily available in the local markets. “In 1975, when on a tour to Europe, I visited the Imperial War Museum in London, and the Army Museum in Paris. The war had ended 30 years ago then, but in Europe, there were several antique shops that were still selling original world war artifacts,” expresses Bilpodiwala, who exclaims that most of his collection has been gathered from the chor bazaars from all across the country and world over.
As easy as he makes it sound, he promptly adds the fact that across the globe, the world war is an incident looked down upon by many. “The world war has left a bitter taste in the mouths of many and people are not willing to speak about it openly. I had to hunt meticulously and with great difficulty I managed to procure these collectibles,” he adds.
An unusual passion and a dedicated one like this also entails unmatched commitment to maintain it. And this credit he attributes to his family, especially his wife Nergish. “There were times, especially, when we were touring the war museums, I would simply wait till he finished his extensive research. The war can be quite a boring topic for many, but for my husband it was a natural outcome of a genuine interest in reading. It was a widely-covered topic then and television, too, was not so popular,” Nergish says.
The Nazi helmets, dagger and silver badges that were used in WWII
The Bilpodiwalas take a lot of care to maintain their invaluable artifacts. “Most of our collectibles are kept in cupboards that are well-aired. Since the number of items is a lot, once a year I clean all of them. To keep away white ants, tobacco is spread between the pages of books, once or twice a year,” adds Nergish.
So what does one do when history has completed its phase? Bilpodiwala adamantly mentions that he will continue as long as he lives to keep this passion alive. “Whenever I get the chance I collect. Nowadays, it is difficult to get the latest editions of war material since that era of history is done with. When time calls for it, I shall most happily gift this priceless treasure either to my children or donate it to a library or a museum.”
Posts
