Antique radios grab eyeballs at this expo

Those who were out on Bharathi Park in Sai Baba colony for their morning walk and jogging recently, were in for a pleasant surprise. They were welcomed with a huge collection of antique radios which were put up on display by city-based antique collector MA Abu Thahir. Abu, who has been collecting antique coins, documents, wall clocks, watches, televisions and radios, is on a mission to make people aware of the different kind of radios that were in existence. The exhibition had a number of radios displayed including ham radios that were used under the British rule, Gerald Philips used in ships, Air voice radio, Indian Tata radios and GD Naidu radios amongst others. These radios date back to the 1920s. Interestingly, Abu has travelled across the country to gather information about the radios.
“It was amazing to see people from different walks of life and age groups visiting the exhibition. Many people didn’t even know that there was an occasion earmarked for radios called, World Radio Day. Some were surprised to see old radios invented by Indians. They said that the event helped them learn the history of radios. I have always wanted to celebrate World Radio day in Coimbatore. Countries across the world celebrate the occasion and few countries in Europe even honour people who collect radios to encourage their effort. I have never exposed my radios in the sun, but when I was asked to display the collection for the people, I just couldn’t say no. Even after the advent of social media and other mediums, radio still has a place in our lives and that’s why we need to tell the story.”