Curious for keep sakes

For some people collecting things may seem like a mildly enjoyable activity but for others, their collections are obsessions. We talk to people across the city who have been passionately collecting action figures, Madras memorabilia and even boardgames! We must warn you, side affects of reading this are severe pangs of envy and jaw-dropping.

I collect limited edition statues, action figures and pop culture figurines like Giant Robot, Godzilla, Robocop and of course DC and Marvel figures. I used to adore Superman comics as a kid and I used to draw and sketch a lot. My initial figures were those of He Man and G.I. Joes. But I started collecting seriously in 2010. Of course, it’s a little risky and costly since you don’t find many figurines in India, but it’s worth it. My friends tell me my best piece is the life-size bust of Batman but I think it’s the Christopher Reeves Superman. I haven’t really counted but I believe I own 60-70 pieces now including a two-foot high Godzilla statue. My biggest support has been my wife, she even helps with cleaning them. I’m still collecting the DC and Marvel line, and it’s safe to say that I’ll collect till I die!   
 — Manoharan Ellapan, Lawyer

I  collect things that have a Madras connect to it, since they have a certain heritage value — be it knick-knacks from Spencer Plaza, Higginbothams or Georgetown and even calendars with old Madras brand names on it. You could call me a borderline hoarder. I have always been a collector since high-school but the Madras obsession started relatively recently. This would probably be my way of chronicling  the city through objects. I also collect ‘Swamiware’ which is silverware with stuff like Dasavatharam engraved on it and even railway memorabilia. The dream is to one day, open it to the public.   
— Ashvin Rajagoplan, Entrepreneur and film producer

The first comic book I owned was an Asterix comic when I was five years old. Asterix in Spain was the comic that actually inspired me to start cooking. I saw a lovely picture of cheese fondue in the book and tried my hand at making it. Now, my collection has grown to 3,562 comics that are kept individually-ziplocked, safely tucked away in a room with a de-humidifer. I have Phantom, Mandrake, Asterix and even a 1982 Star Wars comic that was valued at $5,000 eight years ago. Funny story — when my wife and I met, she saw my collection and thought they were old newspapers that needed to be thrown out. But now, she is much more understanding of my collection and thankfully, my son takes after me.
— Koushik Shanker, Chef

I  started collecting boardgames in 2012 and currently have  around 120 games. As with so much else, this fascination was born on the Internet. I read an article on a video-gaming site — I’ve been a gamer all my life but, like many others, I had no idea what boardgames were apart from Monopoly and Scrabble. I picked Mage Knight to start with and I was off. Initially people were skeptical since they had no frame of reference for how incredibly interesting modern board gaming can be but it really picked up! We now have an enthusiastic community of gamers and it keeps getting bigger.    
— Arjun Sukumaran, Writer