Chennai
It was a life changing experience for me to have seen MG Ramachandran (MGR) so close during one of his public marches in 1977. I still remember I was around 11 years old then and he was there on Mount Road (as it was called then), where the current Bata showroom is located. I was mesmerised by his presence. I have been his fan since then. I started collecting his photographs. It began with getting hold of all the photographs of that particular event. I scouted -through all the newspapers and magazines and then the bug of collecting photographs truly bit me. Within a matter of days, I had several photographs of MGR and in the years to come, I would involuntarily look out for his photos, scan pictures from books and take a picture of him. It was as if the hobby chose me. In this pursuit, I was fascinated by history. I would endlessly read about famous personalities and start collecting their pictures. It became a part of my life.
Seeing my sizeable collection, many people suggested that I put all these pictures on display. I am into the business of plastics and have an outlet on Kasi Chetty Street and also a small plastic goods manufacturing unit. I decided to put up all the pictures of MGR I had for the first time on September 15, 2009 outside my shop. I have some of these rare photos in my shop. I also have photographs of Mahatma Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, Rabindranath Tagore and many more prominent figures. On occasions like their birthdays, I put them up on display. Now, in this year of MGR’s centenary year, I have displayed more than 1,000 pictures that I have collected over the years. This is my way of paying respect to him. Following this, I will have an exhibition of Amma’s photographs. I am a small business family and have been in Chennai from very young. Collecting photos is just a hobby and I do not gain any monetary return out of it.
- ANAND KUMAR BHOWMICK (52) Businessman
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