HMT breaks hearts with its time-up call
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement about 'Make In India' couldn't come at a juncture more ironic. Around three weeks ago, watchmaker Hindustan Machine Tools, popularly known as HMT, announced that it would be shutting shop after over fifty years in business a truth that hasn't gone down well with fans of the iconic watch brand, both in India and worldwide.
HMT's craftsmanship makes the watch a prized possession among horologists in the UK and Germany for its design finesse and superior quality.
"My first HMT was a classic white Janata," says Mathias Uslar, 36, an electrical engineer from Germany. "I have been collecting watches, including HMT, for about five years. It started out as a hobby in finding the cheapest, solid mechanical watch around. HMT caught my attention at a German watch forum; they are rather small compared to 'new' ones, so they look classic."
Englishman Paul Barlow, 52, has a similar story. "I first encountered HMT less than a year ago when I started looking for an affordable mechanical watch on the Internet. I found a new HMT Sona on eBy for £30 and was smitten when it arrived. My father passed away two years ago and the HMT reminded me so much of the gold-plated, mechanical one he wore. Also, the workmanship on it was superb."
Both Mathias and Paul discovered their HMTs via mentions on watch fora. Along with another German marketing professional, Franz Mattes, they are members of a keen watch lovers' club on Facebook called HMT Watch Collectors, started in 2013 by Bangalore-based HR professional Prashant Pandey, 33.
Mattes, who maintains several blogs on horology, connected with Pandey at an international watch forum. "I really like the HMT Pilot. The size, mechanical hand winding movement, curved dial and curved acrylic glass are typical features of watches of the '60s. Today, you have a lot of companies, especially from Switzerland, who build and sell mechanical watches as a luxury product. But they have nothing to do with these robust watches from the 1960s," Mattes says, adding that he regrets 'losing' his golden HMT Sona to his wife who wears it "a lot".
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Securing an authentic HMT online is quite a task, with the proliferation of dubious sellers offering assembled watches masquerading as the veteran Indian brand.
"One of the key reasons I maintain the fan page on Facebook is to build awareness on the authenticity of an HMT," Pandey says. The group, which started in 2013 with a base of 10 members, has grown to over 400 within a year. While Pandey himself is extremely proud of his personal collection of close to 500 HMT watches, including the rare HMT Rakhi, with its handcrafted Bidari work, and the G06 that shows off a 999-carat gold biscuit on its dial, as group administrator, he maintains a strict no-trading policy within the group.
Barlow says the watch "has soul", adding that a traditional mechanical watch like the carefully calibrated HMT could have a following "if offered in the UK market through specialist online retailers". Kishori Rao (25), from Mumbai, among the newer and younger members on the collectors' group, seconds the thought. "Around three months ago, I bought an HMT Kohinoor for a friend from a trader in Bhendi Bazaar. She didn't know about the allure of owning an HMT then. I couldn't take my eyes off an HMT Jawan at the trader's shop and went back and bought it the very next day," Rao says, also dejected about the company's curtain call.
Mattes says the company could be salvaged by offering exclusive international e-retailing outlets. While the popular notion is that HMT couldn't innovate or keep up with newer trends in watch design, Pandey says the 'chimti' a sound that rolls off the tongue when pronouncing HMT in an Indian-English dialect was the only Indian watch that offered something to the common man of India's hinterland.
Adieu, 'Time keepers to the nation'.
here
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement about 'Make In India' couldn't come at a juncture more ironic. Around three weeks ago, watchmaker Hindustan Machine Tools, popularly known as HMT, announced that it would be shutting shop after over fifty years in business a truth that hasn't gone down well with fans of the iconic watch brand, both in India and worldwide.
HMT's craftsmanship makes the watch a prized possession among horologists in the UK and Germany for its design finesse and superior quality.
"My first HMT was a classic white Janata," says Mathias Uslar, 36, an electrical engineer from Germany. "I have been collecting watches, including HMT, for about five years. It started out as a hobby in finding the cheapest, solid mechanical watch around. HMT caught my attention at a German watch forum; they are rather small compared to 'new' ones, so they look classic."
Englishman Paul Barlow, 52, has a similar story. "I first encountered HMT less than a year ago when I started looking for an affordable mechanical watch on the Internet. I found a new HMT Sona on eBy for £30 and was smitten when it arrived. My father passed away two years ago and the HMT reminded me so much of the gold-plated, mechanical one he wore. Also, the workmanship on it was superb."
Both Mathias and Paul discovered their HMTs via mentions on watch fora. Along with another German marketing professional, Franz Mattes, they are members of a keen watch lovers' club on Facebook called HMT Watch Collectors, started in 2013 by Bangalore-based HR professional Prashant Pandey, 33.
Mattes, who maintains several blogs on horology, connected with Pandey at an international watch forum. "I really like the HMT Pilot. The size, mechanical hand winding movement, curved dial and curved acrylic glass are typical features of watches of the '60s. Today, you have a lot of companies, especially from Switzerland, who build and sell mechanical watches as a luxury product. But they have nothing to do with these robust watches from the 1960s," Mattes says, adding that he regrets 'losing' his golden HMT Sona to his wife who wears it "a lot".
Securing an authentic HMT online is quite a task, with the proliferation of dubious sellers offering assembled watches masquerading as the veteran Indian brand.
"One of the key reasons I maintain the fan page on Facebook is to build awareness on the authenticity of an HMT," Pandey says. The group, which started in 2013 with a base of 10 members, has grown to over 400 within a year. While Pandey himself is extremely proud of his personal collection of close to 500 HMT watches, including the rare HMT Rakhi, with its handcrafted Bidari work, and the G06 that shows off a 999-carat gold biscuit on its dial, as group administrator, he maintains a strict no-trading policy within the group.
Barlow says the watch "has soul", adding that a traditional mechanical watch like the carefully calibrated HMT could have a following "if offered in the UK market through specialist online retailers". Kishori Rao (25), from Mumbai, among the newer and younger members on the collectors' group, seconds the thought. "Around three months ago, I bought an HMT Kohinoor for a friend from a trader in Bhendi Bazaar. She didn't know about the allure of owning an HMT then. I couldn't take my eyes off an HMT Jawan at the trader's shop and went back and bought it the very next day," Rao says, also dejected about the company's curtain call.
Mattes says the company could be salvaged by offering exclusive international e-retailing outlets. While the popular notion is that HMT couldn't innovate or keep up with newer trends in watch design, Pandey says the 'chimti' a sound that rolls off the tongue when pronouncing HMT in an Indian-English dialect was the only Indian watch that offered something to the common man of India's hinterland.
Adieu, 'Time keepers to the nation'.
here