A penchant for keychains

"I am a copoclephologist," proudly claims P. K. K. Nair, a retired senior GM of a bank in Mumbai, India, and goes on to clarify that this means he is a collector of keychains. And proudly displays the 4,000 keychains in his possession.

Looking at keychains in various shapes and sizes – teddies, animals, monuments, cars, politicians, fruits, bottles, universities, actors, shoes, shells, etc., – in miniature forms was indeed a treat. Made of metal, plastic, leather, sandalwood, crystal and cloth, some shone brightly, being gold-plated. Whilst some keychains were disguised as lighters, others were in shapes of recorders, dancing animals, diaries, lights, springing messages and thermometers. Placed behind were jars of keychains in categories of Plastics, Banks, Politicians, Flags, etc.

"I have to store them in airtight containers, considering the humidity in Mumbai," explains Nair, mentioning that every three months he cleans each and every keychain.

So how did this saga begin?

"Thirty years ago, when I went to buy a keychain," he recalls, "I felt I should at least have 100 and automatically the numbers began to grow." Little did he realise that at some point of time, his interest had developed into a collection. As his hobby gained momentum, his friends and relatives started giving him keychains as mementos.

"I now have agents all around the world to help in my collection," he jokes. Since his job had required travelling, he made it a point to shop for keychains. "He'd rarely get what I want, it would be only keychains," said his wife, "and even when he retired, he was gifted a keychain.".

Nair feels keychains provide a wealth of knowledge like historical dates, events, numbers, etc. "Most of the commemorative keychains provide so much information," he adds. He has a 1940 Re 1 coin keychain, which reminds him of his birth year.