Old Toy shop in the heart of Kolkata.....


An old toy shop, childhoods essence.....




An old toy shop, Childhood essence.....
Childhood is the best thing that happens to us, a simple world which accepts and rejects us at the same time thus teaching us the right and wrongs in life. I always knew when things will make no sense at all, I will have my childhood to go back to and gather myself again to walk ahead in life. My grandmother's simple lifestyle of little wanting and little expecting was a happy and ideal life for me, a life that I have always looked upto. I had spent most of my childhood wandering on the streets of Belgachia and my grandmother's house as a traveler discovering new things about life and the world on my journeys. 


Children posses a heavenly innocence in them which is taken away slowly with time as they grow up to know the world more and become conscious about it's workings. Toys symbolise that innocence of childhood which acts as a reminder of imagination and purity of the world. I grew up like you all but I miss those innocent phase of my imagination alot and I still cherish my toys which I have saved from time.
As a child I was always in love with my dolls and kitchen set, I used to play for hours acting as a restaurant chef with my siblings and cousins, serving them delicious meals of cakes, cookies, puffed rice pudding, jelly icecreams and what not thus using a child's boundless imagination.


I remember I had got a sound beating once for cutting wasted paper to make currency which my cousins used to buy things from my store.
I had made cabinets under the bed to keep my small collection of utensils, clothes, dolls and other toys.
My room was full of my drawings and crafts, so I knew I enjoyed expressing my thoughts through painting. I knew I could do anything, make anything and truly my childhood has shaped me as an individual.
Also having scored first position in my class, my parents had taken me to buy toys in a toy shop in new market once. 



I remember that night clearly, it was the greatest day of my life. A toy shop enlightened me always, it was my magical world where imaginations came alive.
Now after all these years where my childhood memories keeps fading away with each present day facade of living a mechanical life,  I saw this cozy, warm and an old toy shop called Hobby Centre in the heart of park street in Kolkata. Being curious in nature, I found out more about this place and fell in love with the world of childhood again.



It's a place where toy collectors get their   big toy airplanes assembled  and to my surprise fly them in maiden area on Sunday early mornings.
It felt wonderful to see rare pieces of big airplanes hanging from the shop ceilings, antic toy cars,bobble heads of famous heroes, wooden toys,etc on display to be bought and cherished. Everything was bustling with life holding their childhood closely and I felt alive again.

Shamshad Ahmed, the store's manager who is well known for his friendly nature and warm exuberance has been working there since 1995 witnessing Calcutta 's change to Kolkata. The store was initiated in 1952. He further shared that this store  belonged to the famous tennis player Naresh kumar who had build this place for his love of old antic toys. Imagine if we too were interesting enough we could end up one day after thousands of years passed as antic pieces of human spieces thus fulfilling our constant desire to be eternal and be like these toys, nourishing the memories of a 



I visit the toyshop icecream parlour regularly which is loved for its pocket friendly treats. So today I'll be spending sometime there writing about the things I still see in this fast changing world.
Hope you relived your childhood through this and if your in kolkata you must meet Shamshad ji for his grounded nature and hospitality cherishing a simple life, imagination and the world of toys again.
Love
Sufia Khatoon 












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