Christie Gomes is displaying his rare collection of around 75 Santa Clauses at his Margao residence. He gives NT BUZZ a sneak peek
CHRISTINE MACHADO | NT BUZZ
If you’re wondering where you can catch up with Santa Claus this year, Christie Gomes’ residence in Margao may be a good place to start. Indeed, it looks like he has already got Santa to pay a visit. Or rather 75 of them to be precise! And from relaxing on a hammock to strumming the guitar, cycling about and practising their paparazzi skills, they seem to be having a ball of a time in his hall.
Gomes, an engineer by profession, began his collection about 20 years ago. “I usually go to Mumbai, a month before Christmas to hunt for these pieces. And now I know all the places to stop at,” says Gomes, adding that he has also sourced some of them from cities like Delhi and Bengaluru. And each year he manages to add about four new pieces. In fact, despite the pandemic this year, he has still managed to source a couple of new pieces.
All these Santa Clauses are stored carefully right through the year, before they are put up for Christmas. “I repack these in the same original boxes or in similar boxes and then once again these are then stored in a bigger corrugated or plastic container,” he says. And while there have been a couple of times when children have dropped these and caused them to stop functioning properly, Gomes says that as long as they are okay to display, he still puts these up.
With a love for innovative things, Gomes also has a collection of unique lights and also antique furniture.
“Since these are creative hobbies my family does not discourage me. This also keeps me occupied,” he says. And while some people may comment that it all seems rather kiddish, this does not dissuade Gomes. “People spend a lot of money on clothes, shoes, etc, but I would rather spend my money on collecting these pieces. This also is a stress buster for me. Plus, it keeps me child-like at heart,” he says.
The Santa collection has been up for display at his home since late November. “We decided to set the display early because I wanted to uplift the dampened spirits due to the pandemic,” he says, adding that it gives him a lot of pleasure and satisfaction when friends and relatives come over and enjoy watching the Santas in action. And guests are welcome to drop in. “Sanitisers will be provides and social distancing maintained,” he says. In the near future, he may consider holding an exhibition of these. In the meantime, he is on the hunt for a Santa riding a bike. His Santa collection will remain on display till January 6.
