#WATCH TIMEPIECE GROUPS PRO#

The group is diverse, from students to retirees, and has gained enough traction for Balachandran to consider splitting it up into separate ones for Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. Today, the group has 300 members within Kerala, and about a 1,000 all over India (via social media following and chat groups) due to the language barrier, Balachandran prefers to restrict the WhatsApp group to those who speak Malayalam. The Casio store in the city has also given early-bird access to members. But because of Nazhika, Prince Adithya Varma said that he would open it up for group members whenever we wanted,” says Balachandran. “The Methan Mani clock tower on the top of the Old Fort Palace in Thiruvananthapuram is a mechanical wonder and access to it is under the royal family. The launch of Nazhika accelerated the speed at which people got to know about TimeGrapher, and also opened up new opportunities for the group members.

#WATCH TIMEPIECE GROUPS PRO#

The zero- pro t watch was released by Prince Adithya Varma of the erstwhile royal family of Travancore at Kowdiar Palace in Thiruvananthapuram all 40 pieces went to the TimeGrapher community members who had pre-booked it. The assembly was handled by Ali Bagasrawala, CEO and founder of HATZ Inc, and a prominent face in the Indian watch community. The main components of the watch are all upcycled-dials repainted and movements repaired and serviced- and the straps are synthetic leather. Representative of Kerala and its culture, its highlight is the painted hourmarkers in a specially designed Malayalam numerical script, the font for which was created by Dilip Maniyappan, a graphic designer and TimeGrapher member. It is eponymously named after the traditional way of timekeeping in Kerala. Designed and developed by community members, Nazhika is a minimalistic 36mm steel watch featuring an HMT 0231 movement, with a power reserve of up to 40 hours. So, they decided to create a new timepiece. When COVID-19 struck in early 2020, a house-bound Balachandran, along with a few TimeGrapher members, wanted to spend time more productively, while also keeping the edgling community engaged. From there on, I went absolutely crazy for watches,” says Madan, who is based in Delhi. What exactly went into differentiating the brand value, the monetary value? I searched online, landed on WatchUSeek forums, and made a deep dive into the world of watches. Some time later, he came across a Hublot worth `17 lakhs. The technology geek and then horology novice fell in love with watches in 2013, when he bought a limited-edition HMT, his first mechanical watch. This was what led Dr Karan Madan, founder of India’s largest watch collecting community, Watch Enthusiasts India (WEI), to establish the group in August 2015. But at the heart of it is the chance to connect with people who share the same passion. From discussing new watches and iconic models to being able to get a large and varied set of opinions before buying a watch to even landing a vintage reference or a pre-loved piece at a great price, these groups help their members in several ways. Think of it as a support group for horophiles, only with a positive spin.

Watch timepiece groups