A brief look at Rajiv Jacobi's Facebook wall, will tell you just how ardent a fan of
Elvis Presley he is. The Kalyani Nagar, Pune resident's timeline features countless pictures of the
King of Rock and Roll. Rajiv is co-founder of the official
Elvis Presley Fan Club of India, touted to be the country's first such club recognised by Graceland/Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE). And its members will informally meet up today, as they do every year, to commemorate Elvis' birth anniversary over food, drink, and more importantly, the star's most-loved hits.
The idea for the club came from Rajiv's friend Sandra Geils. "She suggested starting a club after visiting the 'Elvis room' at my place in 1969-1970," says Rajiv, who did so along with Zahir Chinoy (the present club president), Rajiv Vaidyanathan, Dilip Dhoria, and (late) Vickram Vora. Rajiv says, "In the 80s, when the EPE was formed and Elvis' famous mansion
Graceland was opened to public, fans from abroad were invited to join EPE.With the help of friends from the USA, the Pune-based club was officially registered and recognised."
Today, the club operates mainly out of Pune and Mumbai, with over 3000 fans registered from across the world. Membership to the club is free of charge, with approximately 500 fans from Pune and Mumbai alone. The youngest is eight-year-old Zara Chinoy. Her favourite Elvis number is Welcome to My World.
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During my exam preparation, the last thing I do before going to bed is listen to Elvis' Are You Lonesome Tonight and In The Ghetto. People are often surprised to know that I'm an Elvis fan; they usually associate him with the older generation. But Elvis is really a class apart, and I've been able to introduce quite a few of my friends to his music.
— Dr Nakul Parasharami, 29, a member of the club
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The fan club possesses, between its members, all officially-released Elvis music, as well as rarities that are still not officially available to date (the Connie Francis hit Who's Sorry Now?, for example). Additionally, their collection comprises 3000 Elvis LPs, CDs and cassettes. After the advent of videotapes, the club set about collecting all 33 of Elvis' movies, and TV shows, which were later upgraded to DVDs and Blu-ray. Interestingly, Rajiv made a trip all the way to Sri Lanka in 1983, just to get two Elvis videotapes from Naomal Desilva, another fan. The group stays in touch sharing collectibles.
But the club's most prized treasure is perhaps the "den". What's that, you ask? If you visit the basement of Zahir's bungalow in Pune's Kharadi area, you'll be treated to a massive collection of Elvis memorabilia gathered over the years. Every corner spells Elvis, with hundreds of posters of the star in his most popular stances, neon signs, show adverts and postal stamps from different countries housed there. Not to forget, a pair of the famed blue suede shoes as well!
Each relic there comes with a story. Letting us in on the one behind an original Elvis autograph, Zahir says that it was arranged spontaneously in the early 60s by a waitress at a Hollywood restaurant, for his mother who was visiting there. The waitress happened to know someone working on an Elvis movie set. The autograph finally came by post a few months later much to the surprise of Zahir's family, who had forgotten about the promise made by the waitress.
Today, the club is doing its bit to keep Elvis' memory alive. They've co-organised several shows with the Pune Jazz Club. They now mostly meet informally for movie screenings or music sessions, which are open to all. There are plans now for a show by Elvis tribute artiste, Garry J Foley, in Pune later this month. While the club members prefer to keep details about the show a top secret for now, it's clear that for them, Elvis has not really left the building.
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One of the first purchases I made on moving to Pune was an Elvis concert video of 1968. I went to a bookstore to order it, but they could not guarantee the same as there was little demand for the product. I remember calling the bookstore from five different numbers to place the order, just so that they felt there was a demand for the video after all. I ended up buying all five copies of the concert that they ordered!
— Satvik Jaitly, 27, a member of the club
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Elvis is on the city's silver screens
Back in the day, Elvis films would usually release at Camp's West End and Empire, as well as at theatres like Vijay and Alka in the city area (you can see pictures of the movie bills below). Elvis' films were also screened by the Hodiwalla Moving Cinema, at Pune army clubs each day of the week. "From the 50s to the mid-60s, tickets could cost anything from Re 1, to Rs 3 for a balcony seat. There would be at least two of his movies screened each year and everyone dressed up in their Sunday best to attend," Rajiv reminisces. In the late 60s, apart from the radio, it was difficult to acquire music. "Elvis records were not released regularly, and one had to get friends from abroad to send them by post. Many records were "lost" in transit, and postal customs officials had to often be bribed to release the records," he adds.
Pics: Elvis Presley Fan Club of India, sourced
