By
HETAL ADESARA
Checkmate!
No, we're not playing that board game
here! In this edition of Collector's Item,
we're talking about HBO South Asia
country manager Shruti Bajpai and her
husband Nestle India vice president dairy
business Mayank Trivedi's chess sets'
collection.
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Shruti
Bajpai
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While
the couple already boasts of 12 chess
sets from various countries across the
globe, they have just added two more from
Turkey (where Shruti and Mayank are currently
holidaying).
Speaking
to Exec Life from Turkey, an animated
Shruti says, "We have just added
the 13th and 14th chess set to our collection.
Turkey is famous for Mother of Pearl and
also for Mosaics. We were keen to buy
a chess set that was made of either of
these and luckily we found both."
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A
Mother of Pearls Chess set from
Turkey
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They
started their collection three years back
when Mayank was transferred to Switzerland.
While it was he who initiated this collection,
Shruti too started sharing his passion
for chess sets within no time.
Such
is their passion for collecting chess
sets that the first thing on their agenda
while visiting a new country, is to go
on a chess set selection expedition! "For
us the priority is to have a chess set
from a country that we have visited. It
is very easy to ask friends to bring you
back chess sets from where ever they are
going but we don't like to do that. Secondly,
it has to have something that symbolises
the country the chess set is from and
it has to have typical characteristics
of that country and its flavor,"
says Shruti.
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A
chess set from Egypt
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Shruti
and Mayank have to pick a set from each
country they visit and hence their home
in Delhi sports a special area that displays
their collection from countries like Equador,
Egypt, Korea, Greece, Germany, Kenya to
name a few. This special corner in their
home is diligently looked after by Mayank,
who is very possessive of the collection.
Says Shruti, "Mayank has specially
designed and constructed this corner in
our house where we display the chess sets.
The display has been set according to
a pattern and no one is allowed to touch
the pieces."
With
the help of a small vacuum cleaner, the
couple takes pains to clean their chess
sets to make sure that dust is taken out
of every nook and corner of each and every
piece. While their collections sports
sets made of different material like wood,
ceramic, metal etc; each needs a different
cleanser. "While we clean most of
them with a soft cloth, there are some
pieces that are made of metal and hence
they require regular shining," says
Shruti.
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A
chess set from Greece
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While
most of the chess sets are collected by
them on their numerous trip abroad, there
are a couple of sets that have been gifted
to the couple by family and friends.
Of
course, the hazards of picking up a fake
piece or a 'Made in China' piece, when
abroad are always there. To avoid being
conned, Shruti and Mayank make sure that
they do their research and also ask reliable
people who know about the country's heritage
to find out what they should be looking
for in a chess set. "We are very
careful to pick up the right piece.
Since
we have been doing this for the last three
years, we can now make out a piece that
is a Chinese make. We make sure that we
ask around for the authenticity of what
we are buying to avoid being duped,"
she says.
A
passion for traveling coupled with an
interest in chess is what made them start
their collection. While the traveling
continues, the board game has now just
become a prized collection of theirs,
with the couple seldom getting down to
playing the game itself. "While we
used to play chess a lot earlier, now
it has become more of a passion of collecting
the sets. We don't sit to play anymore,"
informs Shruti.
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Swaroski
chess set: Ultimate Collector's
Item for Shruti & Mayank
|
Since
the couple is always on the lookout for
authentic pieces, what is the kind of
money that they spend on buying chess
sets? "Since
this is not "art" in the strict
sense of the term, the monies are affordable!
On an average, a chess sets costs anywhere
between $ 100 - $ 300. We are also not
brand conscious when it comes to these
sets. In fact, we have some really elegant
yet cheap sets," says Shruti.
While
the collections increases year after year,
one luxury that Shruti wants to treat
herself and her hubby to in the near future
is the Swaroski
chess that she laid her eyes on some time
back!
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