Her unusual collection keeps the magic
of Santa Claus alive
The chill has set in, sweaters and quilts
are out and once again it's jingle-bell time. Time for that
warm feeling of Christmas - bedecked trees, rich plum cake,
carols and of course, jolly old Santa Claus! While children
all over the world are charmed by this roly-poly white bearded
man and await his presents every Christmas, Santa also has
plenty of grown up fans. Mrs. Kamla Dutta is one of them.
She has an unusual hobby: she collects Santa Claus motifs.
From stuffed toys to key-chains to bottles to wall hangings
and mats to coffee mugs, Mrs. Dutta has them all. In a huge
variety of forms and sizes, she has seven hundred of them!
Her unusual hobby started as a little Christmas ritual
that she and her daughter indulged in. Every year they bought
different kinds of Santas, and it soon grew into a little
collection. As the years went by, her daughter lost interest
in the hobby but Mrs. Dutta kept at it. From little models
and stuffed toys she moved on to collecting anything and
everything that had a Santa painted or printed or knitted
on it. "I didn't want my collection to be confined
to one particular kind of article. I believe in variety
and I have to have anything that has a Santa Claus on it."
She is well acquainted with quite a few shopkeepers who
stock Christmas decorations and keep her posted on what's
available. She often does a round of the shops to look for
additions to her collection. Besides buying Santas, Mrs.
Dutta also makes some herself. She modestly admits that
she's an amateur and that her drawing skills are quite poor;
but that doesn't keep her from her passion. She uses cloth,
stone, wood, cotton, thread, etc. and almost every object
is a prospective Santa Claus to her! Santas painted on a
brush, a fan or a leaf are some of her rather unconventional
designs.
Mrs. Dutta collects her Santas with the passion of a coin
or stamp collector. She doesn't wish to sell what she makes;
she simply wants to exhibit them. "Kids these days,"
she feels, "don't really know much about this special
character associated with Christmas. I essentially want
to keep the magic of Santa Claus alive." She invites
children home to come and take a look and would love to
exhibit her collection at schools too. If you take care
of the transport and space, she would be happy to exhibit
them specially for you. Mrs. Kamla Dutta can be contacted
at 26854287.
Nikhil Roshan
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A
lampshade today does much more than simply cover a light
bulb! Lampshades diffuse the light or focus it in a way
that highlights the décor of a room. And some lampshades
bring their own personality to a room. 
