The eraser enthusiast

RAMANDEEP KAUR | NT KURIOCITY

Erasers have been part of our life from the very day we began to write. We get erasers in different shapes and sizes but they serve one purpose and that is to rectify our errors. In this fast paced and hectic life, erasers have kept 22-year-old Roma Vinay Bharne connected to the child in her. Roma was 10 or 12 years-old when she received a few watermelon and grape-shaped erasers as a return gift at a birthday party. She found them so unique and cute that she was reluctant to use them and kept them in a small box, and played with them during her free time. That’s when she developed the hobby of collecting erasers. Although it’s been a few years, Roma still has these fruit erasers.

A food blogger and YouTuber, Roma who holds a  Bachelor’s degree in commerce from S S Dempo College of Commerce and Economics has more than 900 erasers from places like Mumbai, Belgaum, Pune, Delhi, Bangalore and overseas.  She says: “The erasers are mostly gifted to me by my family, friends and a few relatives. I have erasers of all shapes and sizes which include footwear, animals, fruits, make-up,transport vehicles, stationery, mobile phones and more. And being a food blogger I have immense love for food and have miniatures of food items.”

These erasers are very precious to Roma. She keeps them in plastic boxes in a small storage space in her bedroom. No one is allowed to open the boxes without her being there. She intends to continue collecting erasers till she can and does not mind passing it on to her nephew Shlok who has also started a collection and already owns about 50 erasers. “I hope he takes my collection forward,” says Roma who has not thought of attempting any record yet but hopes to make one someday.

Some of the erasers she owns are really unique and are sourced from international sites. These consist of erasers shaped as a pair of scissors, a watch, lipstick, a small computer, toothbrush and more.

She does not use any of the erasers from her collection as she does not want to ruin them. When it comes to displaying her collection, Roma says she doesn’t really show them to anyone as she is very possessive and doesn’t like people touching them. However, she doesn’t mind exhibiting them in the future.

In the years to come we might stop using erasers as technology advances, and that is when Roma has decided to exhibit her treasured collection.

When asked how her parents and friends react to her hobby, she says her parents and friends have been very supportive ever since she discovered her love for collecting erasers and adds: “They are always curious and keep asking me questions to know about my erasers and that’s why I made a video on it and posted in on my YouTube channel – Missbharne.”

Everyone has childhood memories and hers is the time her father got to know about her hobby and the collection and bought her a big bag filled with various erasers from stationeries all over Goa. “I remember dancing around with them the entire day. Another fond memory that I can recollect is the smell of these erasers. Each and every eraser came with its own distinct smell,” says Roma.

It is not easy to have an eraser collection and Roma has to take good care of hers. She takes them out of the box once or twice a month and places them under the fan overnight as they are very delicate and could melt and stick to each other.

Collecting erasers has always been her passion and so she never really kept a count of how much money she has spent till date, she says: “The price of the erasers differs depending on their size and availability, particularly when I’m buying them online. I don’t have a very expensive or cheap one. But once I remember spending around `2000 to buy erasers online. They range from `10 to `500 or more.”